My parents (non-beekeepers) just forwarded me an MSNBC online article more 
or less about the end of civilization and the food supply.  It contained 
the follwoing chart:

Crop and value in billions 2006-percentage pollinated by honeybees
Soybeans- 19.7 - 50%
Alfalfa- 7.5 - 60%
Cotton- 5.2 - 80%
Almonds- 2.2 - 100%
Apples- 2.1 - 90%
Organges- 1.8 - 90%
Peaches- 0.5 - 80%
Cherries, sweet- 0.5 - 90%
Grapefruit- 0.4 - 90%
Tangerines-0.1- 90%
Source: US Dept of Ag; AP Roger A. Morse and Nicholas W. Calderone, Cornell 
U.

There's a lot more I could learn about the value of pollination, so please 
correct me if I'm wrong, but my understanding is that soybeans may produce 
some honey, but the soybean crop doesn't even substantially benefit from 
honeybees let alone depend on them.  The value for alfalfa is surely the 
value of the leafy stuff, not the seed crop, which means its value doesn't 
even depend on flowering, let alone getting pollinated.  Cotton, to my 
understanding, is more or less the same story as soybeans.  

Obviously almonds are a big deal for beekeepers, but I was surprised to see 
the value of the almond crop higher than apples.  Personally, I eat 100 
times the value in apples that I do in almonds each year.  Is it just that 
we export so many, whereas apples are mostly just for the domestic market?

It was also my understanding that peaches are self-fertile, and don't 
require a pollinator at all.  And I thought citrus was more or less the 
same story.

I'll be grateful to whoever can fill me in on any important details and/or 
correct me.

Thanks, Eric

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