The U.S. Department of Agriculture is suspending the only federal program that tracked honeybee losses, which could make it more difficult to understand declines in bee health and the subsequent impact on food production.
“The decision to suspend data collection was not made lightly, but was necessary given available fiscal and program resources,” USDA said in a statement about its decision to stop collecting data for the annual Honeybee Colonies report.
Commercially managed honeybee colonies are used by farmers to pollinate a variety of fruit, nut, and vegetable crops. Some agricultural economists estimate that as much as one in three ...