Extreme heat is keeping bees from pollinating. Here’s why that could affect your grocery bill

Honeybees spend more time cooling their hives as temperatures rise, leaving less time to pollinate the fruits, vegetables and nuts people rely on.

Heat waves affect more than your comfort and electric bill, they may also impact the food on the table. 

Research shows that as temperatures rise, honeybees are spending more time and effort cooling their hives instead of pollinating. These altered behaviors could affect the food humans rely on every day.  

When a honeybee hive becomes overheated, the bees use water droplets and increase fanning to regulate the temperature, according to a study published by the National Library of Medicine. The bees who take on this task, called “water gatherers,” will collect water and spread it on the combs in a process known as evaporative cooling. 

A temperature ranging from 32-36 degrees Celsius (89.6-96.8 F) ensures that young honeybees can also develop quickly, the study explained. Honeybees will increase their fanning activity when temperatures exceed 24-25 degrees Celsius (75.2-77 F) to improve in-hive heat transport and remove water-saturated air. 

What does this mean for consumers?

While these tactics create their own “air conditioning” in the hive, the time they spend fanning and collecting water takes away from their pollinating duties. 

Oregon State University Department of Horticulture Professor Ramesh Sagili told AccuWeather these behaviors may affect grocery bills, since fruits, vegetables and nuts all depend on bees’ pollination services.  

“It will really impact the agricultural system, and so our food production and honeybees -- we always say they are really important for our food security,” Sagili said. “Consumers should think about increased prices right at the end.”  

Sagili leads the OSU Honey Bee lab, dedicated to sustainable apiculture and crop pollination through three core areas: honeybee health, honeybee nutrition and honeybee pollination.

While some bees leave the hive to collect water resources, others do not venture outside the hive at all because they perceive it is too hot. Both of these shifts in behavior decrease pollination. 

Sagili added that some plants are blooming earlier in the season due to rising temperatures, which creates a “mismatch in phenology.” If bees emerge from their hives and the flowers they rely on have already bloomed, they will not have food and resources to pollinate.  

Other insect populations are struggling

Honeybees are not the only insects facing challenges. During the past 20 years, the number of butterflies fell by 22 percent, a 2025 study published in Science Magazine found. Causes of the decline have been linked to climate change, habitat loss and pesticide use. 

The study authors added that decreases in insect populations are concerning because insects play a vital role in maintaining natural ecosystems. In addition to pollination, insects cycle nutrients, control pests and serve as food for other creatures.

Why honeybees and other pollinators are so important

According to the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation, a nonprofit organization that works to protect the natural world, bees are the most vital group of pollinators. Unlike other insects such as butterflies and moths, female bees can visit hundreds of flowers during one pollinating trip. 

Honeybees are integral to the agriculture business, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) explained. These insects pollinate $15 billion worth of crops in the country, including over 130 kinds of vegetables, fruits and nuts. While honeybees are non native to the U.S., they produce the honey many people rely on.

About 35 percent of the world’s food crops rely on pollinators to reproduce, which is “one out of every three bites of food you eat,” the USDA noted. Over 3,500 species of native bees help support crop production. 

How to help honeybees

The Xerces Society recommends growing pollinator-friendly flowers and providing nest sites, such as leaving brush piles and bare ground patches for bees. The organization also advises people to avoid using pesticides, as they can be harmful to pollinators and reduce food sources. 

"The first thing I tell people is, even if you are not a beekeeper, just a bee enthusiast, then plant some decent resources for bees in their backyards, if possible," Sagili said. "Even those who live in apartments, they can promote bee health by at least being a part of this moment to increase habitat for bees.”

National Honey Bee Day falls on Saturday, Aug. 15, which recognizes the work of honeybees and their keepers, according to Awareness Days. While the day celebrates bees’ contributions to agriculture and the food supply, it also raises awareness about threats they face, such as climate change, pesticides and habitat loss. 

"Bees are taken for granted,” Sagili said. “Sometimes it doesn't occur to us that bees are such a critical keystone species for us, especially for agricultural food production."

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