How far is world agricultural production likely to be threatened by pollinator declines?

Abstract

The decline of pollinators in North American and Europe has had profoundly detrimental impacts upon the ecosystems to which they provide an essentai service by facilitating the reproduction of a large number of agricultural crops. This essay examines to what extent the decline in animal pollinators, which has so far been observed on a regional scale, poses a threat to global agricultural production. Although this is a concern for various agricultural sectors, such as e.g. the production of biofuels, this essay will focus on the implications of pollinator declines for the production of crops that are directly used as a food source by humans.