The Economic Value of the Pollination Service, a Review Across Scales

Abstract

Pollination is an ecosystem service that is essential to support the production of a wide range of crops. The service is increasingly under threat, as a consequence of among others habitat loss of pollinators and increasing use of pesticides. In order to support maintaining the pollination service in agriculture, there is a need to better understand the economic value generated by the pollination service. This paper discusses the appropriate valuation methods for pollination at different scales, and presents an analysis of the value of the pollination service based on a literature review. At the local scale, the value of the service is highly variable depending on the crop and the market conditions. At the national scale, value estimates of the pollination service range from 1% to 16% of the market value of agricultural production. At the global scale, there is currently no reliable estimate of the value of this service. When the economic value of the pollination service is analysed, it is critical to adjust the valuation approach to the scale of the analysis.