英語翻譯
Members of the European Parliament have joined a growing chorus urging action to save the world's threatened bee populations.
As Europe business reporter Ben Shore explains,the phenomenon is far more serious than simply a rise in honey prices.
In the plush surroundings of the European Parliament in Strasbourg,a continental breakfast is a common sight.Between 07:30 and 11:00 the various eateries around the building churn out coffee,almond croissants and orange juice at an impressive rate.
But a cloud hangs over the future of this most European of institutions.That cloud is the worrying decline in bee populations.
Bees not only produce honey,they pollinate many of the plants and vegetation which we then go on to consume.
And the continental breakfast?Well,bees pollinate almond trees,so if bees were to die out,the almond filling for our croissants would disappear.The one-euro cup of coffee would suddenly rocket in price,as would the orange juice,because bees pollinate the majority of coffee plants and orange trees.
Even milk would be more difficult to come by,because bees pollinate most types of animal feed,and the alternatives dairy farmers would have to use,probably cereals,are far more expensive.