Do you know these tiny miracle workers, honey bees, ensure food security, nutrition, and maintain biodiversity and ecosystems? Pollinators, like honey bees, play a vital role in producing nutrient-rich vegetables, fruits, oils, seeds, and nuts.
About 75% of the world’s crops depend on pollinators. There are about 20,000 species of bees that help in pollinating. Besides bees, many birds and mammals also help in pollinating, thus this diversification in pollinators ensures increased food security, sustained production of crops, and provides a key ecosystem service for agriculture.
Pollination is nature’s way to eliminate hunger, malnutrition, and unbalanced diets. Honey, a sweet source from honey bees, was considered a sweetener. However, after several research studies, it verified its beneficial substances. It has several beneficial properties that support your gut health, heart health, improve lipid profiles, and treat wounds.
So, Do Bees Matter?
Yes, bees do matter, and they play a crucial role in our agricultural systems. There are about 75-80% angiosperms or flowering plants that highly rely on pollinators for reproduction, and that’s when bees come in handy.
About 1500 crops are pollinated by bees worldwide, which makes 15 to 30% of global food production. So you see, these tiny workers have immense value when it comes to food security.
How are Bees Crucial in the Agricultural Industry in Pakistan?
Pakistan has four different species of honeybees that are present in the different ecological areas of the country, and they used to provide twenty-two varieties of honey. However, since the flowering season has shortened, the varieties have plummeted to only eleven.
But still, bees are crucial in Pakistan as 12,000 metric tons of honey are being produced annually, according to the Honeybee Research Institute NARC, Islamabad.
Honeybees are also crucial in the agricultural sector because:
- They sustain livelihoods.
- They increase crop production by 300%.
- These pollinators are crucial for crop production.
- Pollination-dependent crops are fivefold more valuable.
- Three out of four fruit and seed-producing crops rely on pollinators.
- Pollination-dependent crops lead to healthy nutrition and diets.
- The honey-making business is on the boom.
Bees are Crucial for Food and Nutrition Security
Bees are one of the most important insect pollinators, and their work is not limited to a specific crop pollination. These little buzzing bees ensure diversity, meaning they enhance the production of seeds, nuts, fruits, and vegetables, providing humans with a balanced diet.
Moreover, honeybees also support the livelihoods of farmers. Crops like cucumbers, coffee, almonds, and apples rely on bee pollination. Therefore, it is pivotal to protect the bee population and their health.
How to Raise Awareness about the Protection of Bees in Pakistan?
As we mentioned before, honeybees contribute greatly to food security, but due to the different challenges, their survival and become threatened. The issues include climate change, pesticide exposure, habitat loss, and other diseases. These factors are the reasons for a slow depreciation of the bee population.
Raising awareness to keep them protected is necessary; otherwise, the plunging population of bees could pose risks to nutritional security and food production.
There are many tools through which we can raise awareness about the importance of bees, like social media, by supporting and promoting sustainable agricultural practices, such as creating a bee-friendly space or habitats, and reducing the usage of harmful pesticides.
Other than that, educating agricultural sectors, policymakers, and communities about the importance of bees can help protect these instrumental species.
Honey is Beyond a Sweetener
Honey was usually considered a sweetener because of a high sugar content, almost 80% sugar. But after digging into the depths of it, today, we know that it is an extremely beneficial liquid gold. It has antioxidant, antibacterial, and calmative properties, and is nutrient-rich.
It is also a prebiotic that helps in promoting gut health and helps in treating metabolic syndrome. It is definitely a beneficial alternative to refined sugars.
Honey doesn’t require any additional processing, but its bioactive compounds diminish due to storage and temperature. So when storing honey, make sure to store it at room temperature in a dry, cool, and dark place, as it lasts for two years without spoiling.
Crystallization of honey is a natural process, and a water bath at 40 degrees centigrade can liquify honey; however, make sure that the temperature does not exceed 40 degrees. Otherwise, biologically active substances will be lost.
Honey is used in a wide variety of things. It is mixed into different beverages like milk, tea, and natural juices. It is added to various cooked and baked dishes like meats, cakes, salads, etc. It is also infused in certain foods for its aroma.
Parting Thoughts: Protection of Bees and Other Pollinators Will Lead to Zero Hunger
For centuries, bees have benefited people by carrying pollen from one flower to another, thus improving food production and food security, and nutrition.
Bees are crucial pollinators that are playing an important role to feed the ever-growing population of Pakistan while maintaining biodiversity and vibrant ecosystems. However, these pollinators are declining due to intensive agricultural practices and extreme weather conditions.
It is crucial to encourage pollinator-friendly practices in agricultural management to protect the population of bees from dropping.