5
$\begingroup$

I've read about ecosystem services and their possible valuation - statements like "honeybee pollination service in the US is worth 1.6 billion dollars".

Is data available on how this would affect the cost a consumer pays for a given product? For example if the humans must do all pollination of fruits themselves, how would that affect the retail cost of these fruit?

|improve this question
$\endgroup$
  • $\begingroup$ I've made some pretty big edits because I think I understood what you're getting at. However, if I've changed your meaning, let me know and I'll revert back to the original! $\endgroup$ – Oreotrephes Jan 4 '14 at 0:39
5
$\begingroup$

The cost would increase; either because pollination services are not provided and the supply is decreased; or because the cost to producers goes up as they must pay for artificial pollination. See the extremely detailed analysis in Winfree et al.

edit

I imagine what you're actually asking for is a $ figure "per apple". This depends on the location, crop, market, etc., but just for a ballpark, if I'm reading the supplementary tables in Allsop et al correctly, the replacement value of insect pollination to apples in the Western Cape of South Africa would represent a 6%-25% increase in production cost (and, if the producers pass that along to the consumers, an equal increase in the cost to consumer).

|improve this answer
$\endgroup$
  • $\begingroup$ I'm unsure about the 6%-25% figure; and would love to see other answers. $\endgroup$ – Oreotrephes Jan 4 '14 at 15:18
  • $\begingroup$ Does "replacement value" mean pollination by hand (= no pollination by nature - animals/insects or weather/wing)? $\endgroup$ – Kozuch Jan 9 '14 at 8:39
  • $\begingroup$ Yes; Allsop et al value several different methods (hence the range 6-25) of human-assisted pollination, considering their costs, the resulting yield, etc. $\endgroup$ – Oreotrephes Jan 9 '14 at 13:49

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service, privacy policy and cookie policy

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.