Enjoying your coffee? Thank a bee.
Around here we like to keep things slow and simple, it’s true. And yet, some of our favorite things are gorgeously complex.
Take our morning coffee. It might be one of our favorite simple routines—heat the kettle, grind the beans, brew, sip, repeat. And yet the systems that underlie this daily ritual are nothing short of the web of life. A web held together, in large part, by the hum of tiny wings.
In nature, intricate systems millions of years in the making sustain a balance of earth, air, water, plant and animal. And the smallest of changes can upset this balance.
Take the bees. And the butterflies, moths, bats, hummingbirds and beetles. Collectively, they pollinate and fertilize more plants and flowers than you realize. And this work is far more critical than most of us realize.
Many pollinators are still endangered. And that’s a danger to global food systems and the overall health of our planet.
The good news? We have the power to help protect pollinators. And in the process, project ourselves.
One third of our food depends on pollinators
It’s astonishing to know that bees and other pollinators help feed the world. It’s not just about honey, although we do love our honey. It’s about 35% of the food we eat.
Your morning smoothie, your avocado toast, pumpkin pie, pasta sauce and yes—your coffee.
According to the USDA, “three-fourths of the world’s flowering plants and about 35 percent of the world’s food crops depend on animal pollinators to reproduce. That’s one out of every three bites of food you eat.”
When it comes to coffee, especially the variety known as Coffea arabica, the bean benefits significantly from pollination. While it can self-pollinate, studies show that when bees get involved, coffee plants produce higher yields and better-quality beans.
And yet, pollinators are in trouble, and have been for more than 25 years. Why? Pesticides, habit loss, pollution, and climate change.
What happens if pollinators disappear?
It’s hard to picture, but we have to try. Without pollinators, over 75% of flowering plants wouldn’t be able to reproduce. That means fewer flowers, fewer fruits and vegetables, and far fewer habitats for animals and insects. Agriculture would struggle. Ecosystems would shrink.
Pollinators are part of the connective tissue in nature’s fabric. They support food webs, promote biodiversity, and help maintain the balance of entire ecosystems. When we lose them, the unraveling begins.
Small shifts, big impacts
Luckily, we’re not powerless. In fact, the small choices we make every day can help pollinators survive—and thrive.
Here’s what we’re doing, and what you can do too:
Plant pollinator-friendly flowers: Even a window box with native blooms can become a refuge for bees and butterflies.
Avoid pesticides: Chemicals don’t just target pests—they also harm the helpful insects we depend on.
Buy organic when you can: Organic farming practices tend to support more pollinator activity and soil health.
Leave space for wildness: Let your yard or garden be a little messy. That untamed corner might just be a pollinator sanctuary.
Ditch plastic trash: Plastic clogs the environment and breaks down into microplastics that poison our soil, plants and water. Every reduction in plastic lightens the load on pollinator habitats and protects other animals, including humans.
The butterfly (and bee and bat) effect
In nature, intricate systems millions of years in the making sustain a balance of earth, air, water, plant and animal. The more we human animals work within these systems rather than against them, the more opportunity we have to live more simply inside this complexity.
When we make space for the pollinators, when we reduce trash and plastic, when we eat more seasonally, locally and sustainably, and when we slow down and buy less, the downstream effects form a web of protection for the smallest of living creatures and they in turn do their part to maintain the systems that protect us too.
Together, let’s keep it clean. Let’s keep it blooming. Let’s keep it buzzing.