Honeybee colonies in the United States are expected to face record-breaking losses in 2025.
According to NBC News, scientists have warned that the honeybee colonies all across the US face a threat that could impact the agricultural production of the country.
Related: How to identify bee sting? Find out
Entomologists from Washington State University this week announced that the losses of the commercial honeybee colony in 2025 are expected to hit between 60% and 70%.
For over the past decade, the annual loss for colonies usually ranged between 40% and 50%, but this year a huge negative difference in the annual losses is predicted.
The university also issued a release in which it highlighted that several factors, including a combination of nutrition deficiencies, mite infestations, viral diseases and possible pesticide exposure during the past pollination season, are the reasons behind the higher loss.
Moreover, as per the National Institute of Food and Agriculture, about 35% of the food in the world depend upon the pollinators.
Priya Chakrabarti Basu, an assistant professor of pollinator health and apiculture at WSU, said in a press release, “Losses have been increasing steadily. Pollination demands haven’t gone down, so beekeepers face tremendous pressure to keep the same number of colonies to meet those needs."
Hopkins warned, “I don’t want to be a fearmonger, but this level of national loss could mean increased bankruptcies amongst beekeepers. Growers of crops downstream from almonds may need to scramble if the beekeeper they’ve relied on to pollinate their apple trees, for example, isn’t in business anymore."
The university release also predicted that the higher loss in the colonies will lead to the increased cost for farmers who rely on bee colonies.
Notably, the Agriculture Department of the US revealed that the production value of the honeybee in 2023 was nearly $350 million.
Related: Pesticides dangerous to pollinators found in majority of English rivers
