There are too many domestic bees in Swiss cities, according to a study by the Swiss Federal Institute for Forest Snow and Landscape Research (WSL). Beekeeping is booming in Swiss cities, but the uncontrolled increase in honeybees is putting increasing pressure on wild pollinators, threatening urban biodiversity, found the study. The results suggest that beekeeping […]
Switzerland’s organic honey myth – and how bees are paying the price
In Switzerland and around the world, honey bees are dying. Why do we care? Not just because we love honey. Countless fruits and other plants we depend upon can’t thrive without pollination by bees. Two culprits are largely responsible for honey bee die-offs, say researchers and beekeepers. One villain is the Varroa mite. This parasite […]
How bees add 350 million francs to the Swiss economy
While they are buzzing around Switzerland gathering and spreading pollen, bees are also contributing CHF 350 million to the economy, according to a recent report by Swiss agriculture agency, Agroscope. Without these industrious bees, Switzerland’s (and the world’s) agriculture would wither. Though in Switzerland only 14 percent of cropland directly depends upon bee pollination, that […]
