Chateau Gueyrosse will receive their Bee Friendly certification and label beginning with the 2019 vintage Bee Friendly is an association of European beekeepers, established in 2011 in response to colony collapse disorder. It’s aim is to protect bees and promote pollinator friendly practices. The label identifies and promotes bee friendly systems in agriculture and agribusiness. Currently they have established specifications for 3 sectors, viticulture, fruits and vegetables, and dairy products. They are developing other sectors as well, livestock and meat production, cotton and textiles, crops. Check out their site: https://www.certifiedbeefriendly.org/en/ Here’s a page from it: Why the BEE FRIENDLY label ? BEE FRIENDLY, an answer to the bee protection challenge! 88% of the French are aware of the sudden collapse of bees and 81% identify the agricultural practices as the primary cause of this decline. (IPSOS UNAF 2011 Survey). Identifying bee friendly products, BEE FRIENDLY gives consumers the opportunity to promote agricultural practices and products that are in harmony with the well-being of pollinators. The colony collapse disorder All over the world – and even more so in the industrialized countries, bees and pollinators are declining. Although numerous hypothesis try to explain those phenomena (some far-fetched), beekeepers, as a growing number of scientists around the world, are providing evidence that bees are predominantly weakened by the use of pesticides harmful to pollinators and biodiversity loss arising from the intensification of agriculture However, bees play a vital role in agriculture and biodiversity through its pollination action. In its pollen and nectar foraging, bee pollination contributes to 80% plant species in the world, producing 84% of the cultivated species in Europe that depends directly on its pollinator role. Bees are essential, not only to maintain the balance of natural ecosystems but also to ensure yields from our agriculture (orchards, forage, vegetable, flower and seed production, etc) and thus our food resources. A study by INRA in 2008 showed that pollinating insect activity is crucial as pollinating insects and bees in particular are responsible for 35% of our food supply… the turnover induced is estimated to €153 billion per year worldwide. It is now a priority to protect bees!