The pollination deficit: Towards supply chain resilience in the face of pollinator decline
The pollination deficit: Towards supply chain resilience in the face of pollinator decline
As a society we are increasingly dependent on pollinators. The proportion of global agricultural production that depends on pollinators has increased four-fold since 1961. Much of this dependence is linked to wild pollinators. Where data exists, we are seeing evidence of wild pollinator decline. Over 16 per cent of vertebrate pollinators are threatened with global extinction, 9 per cent of wild bee and butterfly species face local extinction and available National Red Lists show up to 50 per cent of bee species assessed are nationally threatened. This could pose an unidentified risk – a pollination deficit – in agricultural supply chains.
This report presents the results of a year-long project aimed at improving the understanding of pollination risk within private sector supply chains.
This project was funded by the CCI Collaborative Fund. For more information about the project, please visit the project page.
Collaboration / Project(s)
Conserving wild pollinators and increasing food security by strengthening the sustainable management of company supply chains
A diverse community of pollinators provides the most effective and stable crop pollination, but research suggests that wild pollinators are in decline. Commercial agriculture and crop procurement companies have a vested interest in maintaining pollinator services, but are currently unresponsive to this issue. Focusing on the procurement of pollinator-dependent crops, the purpose of this project,…