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Press Info item.
19/09/2008
Economic value of insect pollination worldwide estimated at €153 billion
French scientists from INRA and the CNRS, in collaboration with a German scientist, found that the worldwide economic value of the pollination service provided by insect pollinators, mainly bees, was €153 billion in 2005 for the main crops that feed the world. This figure amounted to 9.5% of the total value of the world agricultural food production. The results of this study on the economic valuation of the vulnerability of world agriculture confronted with pollinator decline are published in the journal "ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS".
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The production of more than three-quarters of crops, that is the majority of fruit, vegetable, oil plant, protein plant, nut, spice, coffee and cocoa crops depend on insect pollination, whereas a quarter do not. In terms of weight, 35% of the world food production come from crops which depend on insect pollination, 60% come from crops which do not (such as cereals) and 5% come from crops on which the impact of insect pollination is still unknown.
In this context, the decline of pollinators has become a major issue, but its impact remains an open question. In particular, the economic value of the pollination service they provide has not been assessed on solid ground to date. Based upon the figures of the literature review published in 2007* on pollinator dependence of the main crops used for food, the study just published in ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS uses FAO (2007) data to calculate the value of the pollinator contribution to the food production in the world. The total economic value of pollination worldwide amounted to €153 billion in 2005, which represented 9.5% of the value of the world agricultural production used for human food that year.
Three main crop categories are concerned; fruits and vegetables were especially affected with a loss estimated at €50 billion each, followed by edible oilseed crops with €39 billion. The impact on stimulants (coffee, cocoa…), nuts and spices was less, at least in economic terms.
The scientists also found that the average value of crops that depend on insect pollinators for their production was on average much higher than that of the crops not pollinated by insects, such as cereals or sugar cane (€760 and €150 per metric ton, respectively). The vulnerability ratio was defined as the ratio of the economic value of insect pollination divided by the total crop production value. This ratio varied considerably among crop categories with a maximum of 39% for stimulants (coffee and cocoa), 31% for nuts and 23% for fruits. There was a positive correlation between the value of a crop category per production unit and its ratio of vulnerability; the higher the dependence on insect pollinators, the higher the price per metric ton.
From the standpoint of the stability of world food production, the results indicate that for three crop categories – namely fruits, vegetables and stimulants – the situation would be considerably altered following the complete loss of insect pollinators because world production would no longer be enough to fulfil the needs at their current levels. Net importers, like the European Community, would especially be affected.
This study is not a forecast, however, as the estimated values do not take into account all the strategic responses that producers and all segments of the food chain could use if faced with such a loss. Furthermore, these figures consider a total loss of pollinators rather than a gradual decline and, while a few studies show a linear relationship between pollinator density and production, this relationship is till to be confirmed.
The impact of pollinator decline was then assessed from the point of the consumer. Pollinator decline would lead to a decrease in agricultural production and consequently an increase in agricultural prices. Consumers would therefore be penalised because they would consume less and at higher prices. To evaluate this loss, the researchers put forward different hypotheses in terms of the reaction of prices to reduced agricultural supply. According to these hypotheses, the loss for the consumer would be between €190 and €310 billion.
These results highlight that the complete loss of insect pollinators, particularly that of honey bees and wild bees which are the main crop pollinators, would not lead to the catastrophic disappearance of agriculture throughout the world, but would nevertheless result in substantial economic losses even though these figures take into consideration only the crops which are directly used for human food. These figures need to take into account the impact of pollination shortage on seeds used for planting, which is very important for many vegetable and forage crops. This aspect would increase the estimated value of the pollination activity. It is also necessary to take into account the adaptive strategies of producers and consumers, for example by the use of substitutes in the food industry. This could somewhat limit the consequences of pollinator loss. Finally, there is also the impact on wild flowers which has not been taken into account and all the ecosystemic services that natural flora provides agriculture and society as a whole.
* http://www.international.inra.fr/press/pollinators_impact
Reference:
Gallai N, Salles J-M, Settele J, Vaissière B, “Economic valuation of the vulnerability of world agriculture confronted with pollinator decline”. ECOLOGICAL ECONOMICS. August 2008
doi:10.1016/j.ecolecon.2008.06.014
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Written by :
INRA press service, phone: +33 (0)1 42 75 91 69
Contacts :
Bernard VAISSIERE
tel. : 33 (0)4 32 72 26 37
bernard.vaissiere@avignon.inra.fr
Joint Research Unit for Bees and Environment, INRA-Université Avignon et Pays de Vaucluse,
Plant Health and Environment Division
INRA Research Centre of Avignon.
or Jean-Michel SALLES
tel. : 33 (0)4 99 61 26 68
sallesjm@supagro.inra.fr
Joint Research Unit for Theoretical and Applied Economics, INRA-CNRS-Montpellier SupAgro-Université Montpellier I,
Social Sciences, Agriculture and Food, Rural Development and Environment Division
INRA Research Centre of Montpellier
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