Bees are critically important to plants and the food supply, and they've had serious survival problems in recent years.
We could work to remove all possible health hazards for bees from the environment, but that's a long and slow process.
What we could also do is work to breed "tougher" bees, bees with greater resistance to mites and disease.
Southern Oregon Beekeepers Association President John Jacob is involved in the effort to breed sturdier bees.
He visits our studio to talk about the process and the outlook.
