Dissenting view on colony collapse

> We live in an imperfect world full of problems. That fact contributes to the ongoing media drumbeat over imminent catastrophe. Horror stories sell; news items about incremental improvements are not interesting except to people in the industries working to make life a little bit better. One horror story is that of Colony Collapse Disorder, a mysterious phenomenon affecting honey bees. It is a real problem that not long ago produced headlines such as "Bee Colony Collapses Could Threaten U.S. Food Supply" (Associated Press, May 3, 2007). 

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> Colony Collapse Disorder has been portrayed as an environmental disaster that is decimating honey bee populations in the United States and elsewhere. While the difficulties faced by commercial beekeepers are considerable, our analysis of colony numbers, input (queen and packaged bee) prices, honey production, and pollination fees provides only slim evidence of a small economic impact. The overblown response to CCD in the media stems from a failure to appreciate the resilience of markets in accommodating shocks of various sorts.

> Our examination of the operation of pollination markets leads us to conclude that beekeepers are savvy entrepreneurs who use their wealth of knowledge of the particular circumstances of time and place (see Hayek 1945) -- acquired over their lifetimes of work to adapt quickly to changing market conditions. Not only was there not a failure of bee-related markets, but they adapted quickly and effectively to the changes induced by the appearance of Colony Collapse Disorder. 

> In contrast to the doomsday scenarios used to describe CCD at its outset, the workings of the forces of competition to accommodate bee disease make less compelling headlines. The receding of CCD from the national consciousness will be noted by few, but the resilience and adaptation to bee disease by the beekeeping industry is a story worth noting -- and savoring -- along with one’s breakfast of honey on toast with pollinated fruit. 

Colony Collapse Disorder: The Market Response to Bee Disease
By Randal R. Rucker & Walter N. Thurman
PERC Policy Series • No. 50 • 2012

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