Honeybee theft is on the rise as colony losses decimate farms

What you probably already know: You’ve heard for years that honeybee populations have been threatened and on the decline. Healthy honeybee populations are necessary for strong agricultural yields, putting no small amount of pressure on commercial beekeepers who can only do so much in the face of habitat loss, pesticide exposure, and a warming climate. New data reveals that there may be even more troubling times ahead for these tiny workers responsible for more than a third of global food production. Without the bees, thousands of different crops will fail. That’s even leading to honeybee hive theft.

Why? Over the last decade, up to 50% of honeybee colony have died. Entomologists say colony losses could climb to 60% to 70% in 2025. Commercial beekeepers across the U.S. reported losing what they characterized as a “completely unsustainable” average of 62% of colonies from June 2024 to February 2025, according to a Project Apis m. survey. The trend was similar for hobbyists and smaller beekeepers. Collectively, 1.1 million colonies have collapsed. Many beekeepers saw this year’s dire forecast coming since last summer, but pinpointing the exact cause and stopping it has been tricky. According to Priya Chakrabarti Basu, an assistant professor of pollinator health and apiculture at Washington State University, it’s likely a multifaceted combination of poor nutrition, herbicide, insecticide, and pesticide use, and parasites like the varroa mite, which feeds on pupae in the hive and transmits viral diseases.

What it means: Every year, honeybees conduct pollinating services worth an estimated $15 billion to $20 billion in the U.S. alone. More than 1,000 plants grown for food, medicines, and materials require pollination. Apples, tomatoes, pumpkins, coffee beans, and avocados all require pollinators to produce fruit. Growers of California almonds — a crop particularly dependent upon honeybee pollination — bring in hives by the truckload between February and March. This year, as many as half of each truck’s hives were dead on arrival. That has driven up prices for the bees, which is resulting in more than 2,300 honeybee hive thefts per year in California’s Central Valley alone. Experts say there may be honey shortages and food costs could go up. Professor Brandon Hopkins with WSU’s apiary program said more beekeepers could go out of business, further dwindling the pool of commercially available colonies. The immediate economic impact of the colony losses reported between June 2024 and February 2025 is estimated to cost beekeepers nearly $225 million; the total economic loss could be around $635 million.

What happens now? There is no human-made pollination alternative to replace the effectiveness of honeybees. Scientists like those at WSU are working to improve honey bee numbers by improving mite control, bee nutrition, and management practices. The average citizen can also do their part by planting honeybee-friendly plants, keeping their own hives, avoiding the use of harmful chemicals, and eating organic foods that aren’t grown with pesticides. Buying honey also supports local beekeepers and their efforts to maintain healthy colonies.