Bee Pollination and Productivity Growth: The Case of Alfalfa

Abstract

Abstract The spread of commercial pollination has received little attention in the literature analyzing the growth in U.S. agricultural productivity. Between World War I and 1960, growers of most fruits, nuts, and seeds came to realize that intensive bee pollination was essential to achieve high yields. Alfalfa seed growers were among the last groups to adopt commercial pollination. This article examines the dramatic impact that concentrating bees in alfalfa seed fields had on yields, which resulted in the restructuring of the alfalfa industry (the fourth most valuable commodity grown in the United States) in the 1950s.