It may seem blindingly obvious, but unlike birds, mammals and insects, plants can’t move around to find a mate. A whopping 75 per cent of food crop species need pollination to maximise the amount of seed or fruit produced, or to improve its nutritional quality, appearance and shelf life. So it follows that pollinators are incredibly important for agriculture, food production, food security, world trade and human health. File photograph: Cyril ByrneSo if we need plants, and plants need pollinators, it makes sense that we need pollinators too. But there’s a problem: the way we grow the plants we eat is killing pollinators on a massive scale.

Source: The Irish Times January 18, 2018 04:52 UTC