Help us save the honey bees

June 2009

We'd all be lost without the honey bee. They help to pollinate many of the crops we rely on for essential food around the world, but due to climate change, pesticide use, disease and other factors their numbers are dwindling.

And because the honey bee does so much for us, at Rowse Honey we've decided it's time we did something to help them.

Which is why we're giving away free packets of seeds to our customers, so you can grow more bee friendly plants in your garden and create an inviting environment for these vital little creatures to thrive again.

We have introduced 600,000 special packs of Rowse Blossom Honey (227g, 400g & 454g Jars) that let you claim a free pack of seeds. Simply enter the unique promotion code that is on the jar via the website and you can help us continue to save the honey bee.

DEFRA announces a further increase in funding for bee research

April 2009

Excellent news - Defra have today announced that the extra £2m for bee research funding announced in January has been increased to a £10m research programme for pollinators.

This is a joint initiative from the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (BBSRC), Defra, the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC), the Wellcome Trust and the Scottish Government.

David Bondi, Rowse Managing Director, comments: ‘We are heartened that the key UK research funders have joined forces to identify the main threats to bees and other insects, however, there is an urgent need to direct research towards how to improve the health of the honey bee in England and Wales. We are concerned that coordinating this initiative will take too long with insufficient focus being placed on vital honey bee health research. A clear focus and timeline for change needs to be urgently outlined.’

We hope that additional funds are granted to Professor Ratnieks and his team at Sussex to enable them to carry out other urgent projects that will help protect the honey bee.

DEFRA increase funding for bee research

January 2009

On 21st January 2009, Defra announced a £4.3 million increase in bee health funding. Of this £2.3m would be spent supporting the National Bee Unit over the next two years to help England's beekeepers deal with the problems facing their bee colonies.

In addition, Defra will increase bee health research funding by £400,000 p.a. for the next 5 years.

Stuart Bailey, chairman of Rowse Honey said: "This is excellent news. We welcome DEFRA's recognition that the bee health issue is serious and that they have a leading role in tackling it. We do, however want to understand the detail of their plans to ensure that they are tackling the right things with the right vigour and speed. We are asking the Minister for this clarification".

Rowse Honey Bee research to be conducted at the University of Sussex

November 2008

The £100,000 research funding by Rowse Honey has been committed to Professor Francis Ratnieks - the UK's only Professor of Apiculture - at the University of Sussex.

The donation will support research at Sussex into breeding strains of "hygienic" bees, which swiftly remove infected larvae and so reduce the spread of the disease within the hive, thereby helping the hive to keep on top of disease problems.

The work will be carried out by Professor Ratnieks and his team in the UK's leading "bee lab" - the University of Sussex Laboratory of Apiculture and Social Insects (LASI), which researches all aspects of the honey bee and social insect biology.

Professor Ratnieks says: "Given the current problems faced by honey bees, the donation from Rowse Honey is timely and significant. Over the next three years, it will enable us to breed our native British honey bee for greater disease resistance. We will be able to test them with the help of the Bee Farmers Association (BFA), and to start providing breeder queens for British beekeepers to multiply the hygienic stock for use in their own hives."

The BFA will support the project by helping to test colonies with hygienic queens in 100 hives across Britain, to see if they are also good at making honey.

The research starts immediately.

Rowse Honey commits £100,000 to bee health research campaign

September 2008

Following the meeting in Wallingford on 28th August with the BBKA, BFA and NFU, Rowse Honey has confirmed its commitment to invest £100,000 in honey bee health research over the next three years.

The meeting was most beneficial as the beekeeping organizations had not previously met with the NFU team to discuss the honeybee crisis.

The group strongly endorsed the campaign of the BBKA for increased Defra funding for bee health research. The BBKA and BFA have already committed funds to support research into bee health.

The NFU expressed its concern regarding the serious impact on the environment and agricultural output if the honey bee population continues to decline.

The group has agreed to meet regularly in the months ahead to campaign, monitor and act in concert in the face of critical declines in the bee population. It calls on DEFRA to reconsider its position with urgency, and agree to fund the necessary research.

How can you help?

1. Download the British Beekeeper's Association public petition
2. Print out the petition and get your friends and family to sign it
3. When completed, send to the BBKA (the address is on the bottom of the petition)

Rowse Honey launches Bee School

August 2008

Rowse Honey have been working hand in hand with teachers to produce a range of downloadable teaching resources for Key Stage One. The worksheets are free to use and come complete with teachers notes.

Click here to visit the Bee School website

Rowse Honey to support research into bee crisis

August 2008

English honey is expected to run out by Christmas this year due to the current bee crisis. Stuart Bailey of Rowse Honey believes that a co-ordinated approach is required to tackle these issues. "Rowse have organised a meeting with the National Farmers´ Union, the British Beekeepers´ Association and the Bee Farmers´ Association on 28th August." Stuart went on to say "The aim is to make sure our various activities are aligned in the pursuit of funding for research. The honey bee crisis is an international issue and needs governments to engage in a joint plan."

Find out more on the lack of English honey by following the link below.

English honey under threat – ITV Local, 11 August 2008
Rowse Honey is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Manuka Supply and Demand

August 2008

Consumers are wondering why there has been a shortage of Manuka on shelf and, now that it is back, why a Rowse 340g Active 10+ Manuka is now typically retailing at up to £9.99 when a year ago it was £7.49. This purely reflects the increased costs that Rowse is having to pay the New Zealand beekeepers to secure honey supplies at a time that there was no carryover stocks from last year and increasing world demand for Manuka honey.

The good news is that Rowse has secured continuity of supply of Manuka to keep our many customers supplied for the remainder of 2008 and over the winter period.

The World Honey Bee Crisis

July 2008

Around the world, the population of honeybees is declining dramatically. In 15 states of the USA, 36% of bee colonies mysteriously disappeared due to a phenomenon known as “Colony Collapse Disorder". Various theories include: bees being stressed by being moved thousands of miles for pollination; a parasite called Varroa which debilitates bees and the fact that bees are becoming resistant to the approved treatments for Varroa; other bee diseases such as Nosema Ceranae; the effect of climate change; the usage of new pesticides which are potentially killing honeybees. UK beekeepers reported average losses of 25% over last winter compared with 18% the previous year. Honeybees are responsible for pollinating 25% of the food that we eat and pollinate 90 crops in all worldwide. UK crops such as apples, pears, peaches, strawberries, blackberries, carrots, broccoli and onions are affected.

The threat posed by the diminishing bee numbers has featured in major newspapers in the UK, most recently the Daily Mail:-

"Beemergency! A mystery plague threatens Britain’s bees and the result could be worse than foot and mouth”
Daily Mail, 2 June 2008
Rowse Honey is not responsible for the content of external internet sites.

Because of the world honey shortage, Rowse Honey is having to pay 60% more than a year ago to secure supplies of honey for quality blending honeys, explaining why Rowse Blossom is increasing in price in the supermarkets. The world honey shortage is also similarly affecting the costs of other honeys such as supermarket own label blends and other brands of honey.

If the larger beekeepers are unable to supply more honey to Rowse, it is expected that the major supermarkets could be out of stock of English honey by Christmas until the new crop next summer.

UK honey sector sees ongoing demand growth

January 2008

HONEY producers and traders are anticipating a continued rise in UK honey consumption over the coming years, driven in part by a new promotional campaign from prominent packager and supplier, Rowse Honey.

The company is launching a year long campaign to help UK consumers understand the benefits of honey.

In a recent press release, Rowse Honey referred to Mintel Research figures showing that UK honey consumption has increased by 48% since 2002. Moreover, Rowse noted that demand is likely to continue rising as the product gets used in a greater variety of applications away from its traditional domain of being spread on toast, and as consumers begin to experiment with the wide variety of honeys now available worldwide.

Stuart Bailey, chairman of Rowse Honey, said the company had seen honey sales escalate over the last five years in line with stronger consumer demand.

He added: “We put the surge in sales down to people using honey as a cooking ingredient and as a healthier alternative to sugar as well as the successful introduction of honey in squeezable bottles.”

Source: The Public Ledger

World honey shortage causes increase in raw honey costs

December 2007

World honey availability in 2007 has been seriously affected by poor crops in Europe and Australia, and also by Colony Collapse Disorder in the USA.

The long, dry summer in Eastern Europe has reduced the Hungarian polyflora crop to only 25% of normal; Bulgaria and Rumania are similarly affected. The Greek and Turkish crops this year were only 50% of normal.

Prolonged drought in Australia has seriously reduced honey production and increased raw costs by 35% in the last 12 months.

The phenomenon called Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) has reduced the commercial bee population in the USA by 60%.The USA is having to import honey from South America and China to make up the shortfall.

High demand for new crop Argentine honey is forcing raw honey prices up. There is still a shortage of good quality honey from China and, as the Chinese and Indian economies grow, so is their domestic honey consumption, leaving less honey available for export.

Honey exports from Brazil to the EC are still suspended whilst improved residue monitoring programmes are implemented. In addition, exports of honey from Vietnam to the EC have recently been suspended for the same reason.

The early indications of the Argentine crop are rather disappointing due to the cool summer temperatures following a dry winter.

Even the UK honey crop has suffered this year. After a very promising warm April, the wet summer has resulted in a poor crop, with borage honey production particularly affected. This is at a time when consumer demand for English honey is increasing.

As a consequence of these shortages, raw honey costs on the world market have risen significantly making it necessary for wholesale prices of honey in the UK to be increased from November 2007 onwards.

New MD for Rowse Honey

December 2007

After 11 years as Managing Director, Stuart Bailey is becoming Chairman of Rowse Honey. He will be concentrating on the strategic direction of the business and looking for new business opportunities in the domestic and foreign markets.

The new Managing Director will be Dr David Bondi, who has been Operations Director at Rowse Honey since February. He has previously held senior management positions at Northern Foods and Unilever both in the UK and overseas.

Image: Stuart Bailey (left) and new Managing Director Dr. David Bondi

Rowse Honey acquired by Wellness Foods Ltd

September 2006

Rowse Honey Ltd has been acquired by Wellness Foods Ltd.

Wellness Foods focus on natural, organic and healthy foods and it is their intention to grow the already successful Rowse brand and work with existing suppliers.