A Bee's Business: Trust Me, Honey

Nick Versteeg mentions in his documentary, Food Security: It’s In Your Hands, that one out of three mouthfuls of food we eat in each meal is somehow a product of bee ‘processing’. I knew bees provided essential ecosystem services within our environment; however, I was not aware they contributed so much to the natural processing and production of our food. Under threat from pesticide use, pests and more broadly, climate change, the survival of the bee is critical if we want to keep eating nutrient rich foods. If we let bees fall to the wayside, serious reductions in crops and agriculture throughout the world will be seen.

In order to bring bees back into the meal, and to acknowledge the work that they do, I thought I would examine one meal, and see if the fact holds true: do bees really contribute one out of three mouthfuls of food in every meal? The bolded ingredients within the list signify that we can partially thank our buzzing friends for their part in making this ingredient possible. A few friends and I made a homemade pizza; here is the breakdown of ingredients:

Documentary Screening Inspiring and Educational

Last Thursday, Nick Versteeg arrived on campus to show his documentary "Food Security: It's In Your Hands". Although we started with a few technical hiccups, I believe the event was quite a success! It was great to see interested students and community members out at this event. The documentary was wonderful and I came away feeling inspired. As an environmental studies student I often become overwhelmed by environmental issues and it becomes hard not to shut-down and easy to give up hope. This film has re-energized my drive and passion for food security and ensured me that others are just as pissed off.

The film asks the question, can we feed the world the way we farm today?  The U.N. estimates that there will be 9 billion people by 2050. The answer is NO. The film introduces us to a variety of characters. Farmers who have converted their commercial farms to organic farms, young farmers, dairy farmers, authors, soil specialists, and beekeepers. Cheap imports undermine local farmers and makes it impossible for them to compete on the market. Only 4% of the population in BC are farmers, the rest are "urbanites". That means if we want to encourage food security and local, sustainable agriculture we require more people to get into farming. Farming isn't the most sexy or glamorous career for students emerging from university to pick.Young farmers Heather Walker and Brock Mcloed bought ten acres of farmland in Cowichan Valley and turned it into Makaria Farm. They remind the audience that environmentally sustainable farming is financially viable and a positive career choice for those who want to live out their values. I learned a great deal about the importance of soil and what is happening to our bees.