Protecting pollinating insects could improve diets and livelihoods worldwide – new study

Apples are an important source of revenue in Jumla, but their yield depends heavily on insect pollinators Tom Timberlake, CC BY-NC-ND

In Nepal’s remote mountain district of Jumla, preparation for a family meal begins long before food reaches the cooking pot. It starts in terraced fields of beans, buckwheat, apples and pumpkins that must be ploughed, planted, tended and harvested before a family can eat.

But other workers often go unseen: the pollinating insects. By moving pollen between flowers, pollinators ensure that crops bear healthy, nutritious fruit to eat and sell.