Skip to content

About PERC

All Areas of Focus

All Research

EconTalk: Bees, Beekeeping, and Coase

  • Walter Thurman
  • PERC Senior Fellow Wally Thurman talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the world of bees, beekeepers, and the market for pollination. Thurman describes how farmers hire beekeepers to pollinate their crops and how that market keeps improving crop yields and producing honey. Thurman then discusses how beekeepers have responded to Colony Collapse Disorder–a not fully understood phenomenon where colonies disband, dramatically reducing the number of bees. The discussion closes with the history of bee pollination as an example of a reciprocal externality and how Coase’s insight helps understand how the pollination market works.

    Written By
    Date
    Topics
    Related Content