If you’re fascinated by all things bees, including Colony Collapse Disorder, Russ Roberts conducted a recent interview on EconTalk with Wally Thurman on the subject. Many questions are answered, though I’m still not sure how much I should be worried about the great bee die-off interrupting the food supply in the U.S., where wild bees aren’t a factor. A Guardian article by Damian Carrington states its a paramount concern in the UK. The opening:

“The UK faces a food security catastrophe because of its very low numbers of honeybee colonies, which provide an essential service in pollinating many crops, scientists warned on Wednesday.

New research reveals that honeybees provide just a quarter of the pollination needed in the UK, the second lowest level among 41 European countries. Furthermore, the controversial rise of biofuels in Europe is driving up the need for pollination five times faster than the rise in honeybee numbers. The research suggests an increasing reliance on wild pollinators, such as bumblebees and hoverflies, whose diversity is in decline.

‘We face a catastrophe in future years unless we act now,’ said Professor Simon Potts, at the University of Reading, who led the research.”