This will also be a part of a wide-scale project planned by KKL-JNF and the Honey Council, to plant 45 thousand nectary trees and bushes throughout the country, in order to save the endangered honeybee. The disappearance of the bees becomes more common every year, and threatens the future of plant-based food, since the honeybee is nature's major pollinating insect, with 80% of the world's agricultural crops being pollinated by it.
The main reason for the bees' disappearance is the shortage of bee food – nectar. This shortage is the result of the climate crisis and extreme events that effect blossoming, alongside urbanization and reduction of agricultural fields. For this reason, KKL-JNF and the Honey council have initiated the project of planting nectary trees, in order to counter the reduction of nectary plants, and to expand blossoming to the late spring, the summer and the autumn.
As part of the project, KKL-JNF nurture every year tens of thousands of nectary trees and bushes seedlings, that are planted throughout the country in collaboration with the beekeepers located at the country's borders. In addition, the honey council and KKL-JNF arranges plating in national projects.
Hagay Yevlowitz, Seeds Division Manager at KKL-JNF: "KKL-JNF increases the collaboration with the Honey Council in order to strengthen the blossoming of the nectary trees, creating food for bees all throughout the year and making the country greener. The distribution of the seedlings is done in full collaboration with the Honey Council and the beekeepers, and over the past few years, the process became more focused in order to help beekeepers and the honey industry. All this while receiving all that the trees provide us with, like carbon sequestration, oxygen creation, soil protection from drift and wildlife invasions, and more."
Ofy Reich, CEO of the Honey Council: "This year, the project is extreme important due to the need to preserve the agriculture and food production sectors in Israel, and revive the agricultural fields in northern and southern Israel. The Honey Council works to find additional territories for planting in Israel, in order to increase nectar supply for the Honeybee – nature's major source of pollination. We see great importance in the involvement of different agencies in nectary planting. I thank KKL-JNF for the many years of assistance to the beekeeping sector with such planting, and the communities and towns that provided further assistance.
According to the council's statistics, there are hundreds of beekeepers in Israel, who take care of tens of thousands of beehives spread in thousands of nectary spots throughout the country, with 80,000 hives pollinating agriculture crops of fruits and vegetables. The value of bee pollinating for Israeli farmers is about 4 billion ILS. Additional info can be found at the council's website - www.honey.org.il, under the "Pollinating and Nectar Plants" tab.