You've probably not given much thought to the role honeybees play in bringing foods to your plate (other than honey), so you may be surprised to hear that "every third bite" of food you take has likely come from a food pollinated by bees. With that in mind, the colony collapse disorder striking bees across the United States and now Europe (destroying 70% of bees) could precipitate an agricultural disaster.
The issue is significant enough to have the federal government involved, with the Senate Subcommittee on Horticulture and Organic Agriculture holding hearings last week to gather more information about the phenomenon. The environmental blog Celsias has an excellent account of the news to-date, with some of the theories about the cause. Potential culprits range from a insect neurotoxin used as a pesticide, genetically modified crops (such as Bt corn), poor bee nutrition, an unknown bee pathogen, limited genetic diversity of bees, parasites or mites. The Congressional Research Service has already put together an excellent brief on the Colony Collapse Disorder, including theories on the cause and the immense agricultural value at stake.
It's worth noting that folks with an agenda are quick to take advantage of the issue. The Organic Consumers Association focused on pesticides as the potential cause, not a surprise for an organization working to advance organic agriculture (disclosure: I heartily support organic agriculture, but it's interesting nonetheless).
Anyway, let's hope the scientists can figure this out fast, since there's more than $1 billion in agricultural products (food) at stake.
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