Imagine never being able to drink coffee or eat strawberries, carrots, watermelon,

peppers, and tomatoes ever again. According to Christina Sarich, a humanitarian and

published writer, in her article Foods We Will Lose, published in August 2013 if beekeepers

did not choose to update their techniques through innovative processes this could have been a

reality. I have done extensive research on this topic through articles, books, and the internet. All

the research has led to a single statement. Bees are dying for many different reasons, and

innovative techniques are necessary to prevent this. In order to inform about this topic, I will talk

about what used to kill bees and what changes were made in beekeeping to prevent this.

The first important point is to understand what factors used to be killing bees. There are

two primary factors that are killing bees. Pesticides that are used on crops are one of the two

biggest things that kills bees. In the book Bees and Beekeeping, published in 1990, the

former director of the International Bee Research Association, Eva Crane, talks about how

after World War Two there was an increase in large scale agriculture instead of farmers only

producing enough to feed their family. Due to this increase in agriculture there was also an

increase in the use of pesticides on crops in order to ensure that the farmers would be profitable

because the crops would not be harmed during growth. This time period was when the majority

of farmers began use of pesticides, and it has not stopped since. The use of pesticides

commercially is prevalent in all parts of the worlds however, they cause issues with many insects

as well as among people. Pesticides are harmful to bees, but they are not the only thing that

causes premature bee death.

Along with pesticides, Varroa Mites are another major factor that kills large quantities of

bees. In the article Good News for Honeybees: 2016 Population Results are Not Horrible

published in May 2017 by Inverse, a digital media company covering technology, science,
and culture, the executive editor, Nick Lucchesi mentions that the Asian Varroa Mite carries

viruses that the European Honeybee has no immunity against. He also states “20 mites among

100 bees was a concern 20 years ago, but today three mites among 100 bees carries the same

threat level.” These mites have become more destructive over the years because of how the

viruses can transfer from mite to mite. The longer the viruses transfer between the mites, the

more viruses each mite carries, and the more damage they can do to the bee population. The

transfer of viruses isn’t the only problem. In the article “Bees in Crisis: Colony Collapse,

Honey Laundering, and Other Problems Bee-Setting American Apiculture” published in

September 2014 the author, May Bernenbaum, a scientist of insects, discusses how along

with mites carrying many viruses these mites have become immune to the methods used to

terminate them in the past. Pesticides and Varroa Mites are the most common causes of

premature bee death and innovative techniques are being created to prevent these issues.

Now that we have covered the primary reasons for bee death we can discuss the

important innovations that have been released recently in order to save the bees. The first

innovation to come to the public was for pesticides. The article “EU Agrees Total Ban on Bee-

Harming Pesticides” written by Damian Carrington who has a PhD in earth sciences,

published in April 2018 by The Guardian provides a lot of information about a pesticide

ban in the European Union. According to this article in the European Union at the end of this

year no pesticides will be allowed to be used on anything, except for items in closed

greenhouses. The reason why this ban is innovative is because it is a new method of farming,

farmers have been using pesticides around the world since World War Two and finally, 73 years

later, things are starting to change. With the lack of pesticides, the bees will be able to live

longer, and help crops grow more. Banning pesticides is a very new idea and it still has not been
widely liked by farmers in Europe. Banning pesticides will not save all of the bees, there is still

another major cause of death that needs to be addressed through innovation.

Along with pesticides scientists have also been trying to find effective ways to get rid of

the Varroa Mite. In the article “the Varroa Mite- a deadly and dangerous bee parasite”

published in 2017 by BeeCare the Bayer Bee Health Expert, Peter Trodtfeld, explains that

they are developing something called “Varroa Gate Technology”. The Varroa Gate is a small

plastic strip with holes in it that goes over the entrance to the bee hive. This strip produces a

chemical called Acaricide that kills the Varroa Mites. This is a very effective technique because

it kills the mites during the reentrance to the hive. If the mites are not killed during reentrance the

mites could spread from one bee to another effecting large portions of the hive. This method is

more efficient because it applies the chemicals directly to the bees causing more of the mites to

be terminated. The Varroa Mites are cited by many sources to be the biggest cause of premature

bee death, so this innovation is very important to save the bees and the crops.

In conclusion the two primary factors that are killing bees are pesticides and Varroa

Mites. Innovation in farming is being used to eradicate death by pesticide. Also, innovative bee

hive designs are being used to prevent death from mites. Both of these new ideas are being

presented in European countries. Pesticides are being banned in all of the European Union and

the creative hives are being designed and tested in Germany. These innovative techniques are

essential to prevent the death of bees. Hopefully we will never have to think about losing coffee,

strawberries, watermelon, or carrots ever again thanks to the innovations in beekeeping that are

protecting the bees and crops of the world.

 Bibligography

Berenbaum, May R. “Bees in Crisis: Colony Collapse, Honey Laundering, and Other Problems

Bee-Setting American Apiculture.” Proceedings of the American Philosophical Society,

vol. 158, no. 3, Sept. 2014, pp. 229–249.

Carrington, Damian. “EU Agrees Total Ban on Bee-Harming Pesticides.” The Guardian, Apr.

2018, www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/apr/27/eu-agrees-total-ban-on-bee-

harming-pesticides.

Crane, Eva. Bees and Beekeeping. Cornell University Press, 1990.

Lucchesi, Nick. “Good News for Honeybees: 2016 Population Results Are Not

‘Horrible.’” Inverse, May 2017, www.inverse.com/article/32107-why-are-bees-dying.

Sarich, Christina. “List of Foods We Will Lose If We Don't Save the Bees.” Natural Society, 2

Aug. 2013, naturalsociety.com/list-of-foods-we-will-lose-if-we-dont-save-the-bees/.

Trodtfeld, Peter. “The Varroa Mite- a Deadly and Dangerous Bee Parasite.” Bee Care, Bayer

CropScience, 2017

beecare.bayer.com/bilder/upload/dynamicContentFull/Publications/The_Varroa_Miteiml

yg0e5.pdf.