Research Triangle Park, North Carolina, USA
June 17, 2015

Experts agree that a major health factor facing honey bees is a lack of forage, as they are unable to access the food they need to survive even as they work to pollinate crops to feed the world. With the human population expected to grow to over nine billion, 70 percent more food will be needed by 2050, meaning bees will need more food to help them meet this demand. To help address this issue, Bayer CropScience donated 40,000 wildflower seed packets to TruGreen, totaling 8 million wildflowers, to increase forage area for pollinators. TruGreen will distribute the seed packets to its customers during National Pollinator Week (June 15-19). This collaboration is part of Feed a Bee, a Bayer CropScience initiative to grow 50 million flowers and expand forage habitat for bees and other pollinators.

TruGreen, a lawn care company with certified specialists who work to provide tailored lawn care for their customers, has made a commitment to pollinator stewardship by collaborating with Feed a Bee to distribute seed packets by hand to clients in Massachusetts and New York. This effort also aligns with the recently announced White House Million Pollinator Garden Challenge, an initiative to establish one million gardens with the goal of providing forage for honey bees and other pollinators, and will result in hundreds of gardens to help feed bees.

“We are very excited about the commitment that TruGreen has made to bee health,” said Dr. Becky Langer, manager of the North American Bee Care Program. “This is a great opportunity to increase pollinator habitat while simultaneously raising awareness around the significant role pollinators play in the food we eat.”

Bayer’s collaboration with TruGreen is one of several collaborations Bayer has launched as part of the Feed a Bee initiative to increase bee forage areas. The campaign had an initial goal of growing 50 million flowers and providing additional forage acreage for bees in 2015. In May, Bayer announced that the campaign reached this goal as nearly 200,000 people have visited www.FeedABee.com and pledged their support of pollinator health.  

Although the initial goal has been reached, individuals are still encouraged to visit the site to commit to growing bee-attractant plants or request to have the Feed a Bee initiative “plant on their bee-half.” Those who have already pledged to plant are encouraged to share their planting pictures via social media with the hashtag #FeedABee.

“The White House Pollinator Health Task Force outlines four key strategies to protect pollinators, and this partnership with Bayer meets two of them: specifically educating the public, and increasing food and foraging areas for bees and other pollinators. We are thrilled to partner with Bayer and include our customers as part of this elegantly practical and responsible solution,” said Jeff Fedorchak, TruGreen vice president of corporate affairs.

Feed a Bee collaborations will continue to help ensure bees can access pollen and nectar sources. Individuals are encouraged to continue supporting the initiative by sharing their planting photos using #FeedABee on social networking sites and visiting www.FeedABee.com to have the initiative plant forage on their behalf or commit to planting bee-attractant plants on their own.

Bayer’s joint efforts with TruGreen are a part of its commitment to protect and improve pollinator health. For more information on Bayer’s bee health initiatives, please visit: beehealth.bayer.us. You can also follow and share with us on Twitter @BayerBeeCare, on Facebook at facebook.com/BayerBeeCareCenter and view photos on Flickr.
 

Website: http://www.bayercropscience.us

Published: June 17, 2015