It’s Earth Day, and one of THE most important components of our food chain is the bee. According to USDA statistics, one in three bites of food we take is the result of bees and pollination. However, over the last decade bee populations have suffered continued and astounding losses with everything from bitter long winters to cell towers taking the blame. One of the most serious conditions is Colony Collapse Disorder, and scientists are busy investigating possible links to parasites, a virus and pesticides. For humans, the survival of bees means our own survival.

Today we’re celebrating these industrious workers with a few fun facts. In addition to their vital role in insuring our food grows, bees are the only insect to produce a food for man—honey, of which, per capita, we consume more than one pound each per year.

Honey bees have been making honey in the same way for more than 100 million years, and honey seems to last indefinitely. Explorers found a 2000 year old jar intact in an Egyptian tomb.
Bright colors of flowers attract bees, and researchers believe that dark lines, called “honey guides,” on some blooms help insects to the centers for pollination and nectar.
Though research is still being done on proposed and traditional health benefits, honey is a valuable source for minerals, vitamins and anti-oxidants. The darker the honey, the more anti-oxidants properties.
A honey bee on a collection trip will visit between 50 and 100 flowers.
If it takes two million flowers to make one pound of honey, one bee would need to fly an estimated 90,000 miles to gather what it needs.
Mead, a honey wine, may be the oldest alcoholic beverage, per evidence of a Chinese vessel dated from 9000 years ago. Drambuie is a Scottish liqueur made with heather honey, whiskey, spices and herbs.