All you need to know about... honeybees

Why are they in the news?

Beekeepers are lobbying for an increase in funding to research how to keep the nation's bees healthy. At present, £200,000 is spent each year, but The British Beekeepers' Association (BBKA) wants this to soar to £1.6 million.

What is the problem?

Apiarists are worried about the successive waves of invading parasites and diseases that have attacked our bees since the Second World War. First came foulbrood diseases, from America and Europe. These could wipe out bee colonies, but are treatable. Then in the 1990s a mite, varroa, arrived from the Far East. This blood-sucking parasite weakens colonies and leaves them susceptible to infection. It has already destroyed virtually all our wild bee colonies - at first domestic hives could be dosed with minute amounts of insecticide, but this pest is now resistant to most treatments.

Two other alien pests, the small hive beetle and parasitic brood mite, could arrive any day from America and Asia respectively. Climate change means hornets (which prey on bees) and Africanised bees (which take over colonies) could also invade. Perhaps worst of all, North American hives are being devastated by Colony Collapse Disorder which rapidly wipes out apparently healthy hives. No one knows the cause, but intestinal infections, increased use of pesticides and mobile phones have been suggested.

Should we be worried?

British bees produce 6,000 tonnes of honey each year, worth up to £30 million. Along with the wax, this sustains scores of rural jobs. However, bees' agricultural value vastly outweighs this. Eighty per cent of European crops rely on insect pollination. Without them, we would have no apples, pears or berries, while oilseed rape, sunflower and tomato yields rely for quality and quantity on these flying visitors.

Although wild insects play a vital role, domestic bees are critical to pollination, due to their numbers (one hive may contain more than 60,000). Bees are worth £165 million to British agriculture every year. This is why our professional beekeepers earn most of their income by leasing their hives to farmers, shifting them from orchard to field as blossom emerges and wilts.

Anything else?

Bees do more than pollinate crops. They are also vital to many wild plants. Without them our wildlife would have no berries and few seeds, while most trees and flowers would struggle to reproduce. Albert Einstein said that if bees disappeared, "Man would have only four years of life left".

Is the Government listening?

Although food and farming minister Lord Rooker says Defra won't fund the BBKA's proposals in full, he is consulting. At the York-based National Bee Unit, staff are also actively investigating a variety of protective measures and in the autumn the Government will launch a ten-year bee protection plan.

How can we protect bees?

Many bee diseases are notifiable, with outbreaks rigorously quarantined and treated. Better training and vigilance from our amateur beekeepers will be critical. On the Continent, many ports and airports have ‘sentry' hives which are regularly checked for disease on the basis that problems are likely to emerge first near the point of entry. The Government is considering introducing these here.

The Country Living verdict

Britain's bees are vital for food production and the environment. More research on ways to combat threats is critical, so sign the petition at http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/savethebee. But money isn't the only answer. Most of the challenges facing our honeybees began overseas, so strict controls on the movement of colonies are also important. Because bees can fly across the Channel, quarantine can't give total protection - but it may buy enough time for researchers to find answers.

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