“In their fight against the homogenization of nature, scientists and farmers are walking well-worn paths and using innovative approaches to help bring native pollinators back to California.”

By Ashley Braun. December 2, 2022. Click here to read the full article at bioGraphic.com.

LINK: BioGraphic.com.

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By Twilight Greenaway And Cinnamon Janzer. October 17, 2022.

Click here to read the full article at civileats.com.

LINK: Click here to read the full article at civileats.com.

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The post Coming Soon to a Food Label Near You: ‘Bee-Friendly’ Certifications appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

A recent development in agriculture has been the rise of climate-focused farming, sometimes called regenerative agriculture, carbon-farming, or climate-smart agriculture. Whatever we call it, this philosophical approach is often presented as a menu of practices that promote soil building as a way to keep carbon in the ground to help avoid the climate crisis.

Agriculture is the single largest land use on the planet, with more than 40% of the Earth’s surface devoted to crops or grazing. Because of this, what we do on farms and with our soil can be an important part of society’s effort to curb climate change. Beyond climate, these efforts help rebuild and sustain the world’s invaluable soil resources, improve the drought resilience of cropland, prevent erosion, improve water quality, and much more.

One important recent development is a new competitive grant fund called Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities.  Launched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it will invest up to $1 billion for pilot projects that accelerate climate-smart farming practices. These include approaches that further reduce tillage, increase cover crop adoption, and scale up concepts such as agroforestry and silvopasture. 

LINK: Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities

This funding is a great step in addressing the nexus between agriculture and climate. But there is another, equally central, but often overlooked factor in this equation: To fully address climate change and sustain agriculture in an unstable climate, we must also address the biodiversity crisis. By making biodiversity conservation a part of regenerative farming and including it in funding options like the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program, the agricultural sector can tackle both the climate crisis and the biodiversity crisis simultaneously.

Like climate change, biodiversity is linked with global stability

Biodiversity – the diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems – is critically important to human health and safety as well as to our economy. Protecting biodiversity is also vital in our effort to address climate change. The more biodiverse a system is, the better the animals and plants that live in these systems can adapt and survive changing conditions. More directly: biodiversity underpins global nutrition and food security.

This fact guides everything we do at Xerces. Insects and other invertebrates represent by far the largest share of animal diversity on the planet, and these small animals provide many services.  For instance, pollinators are responsible for 1 in 3 bites of food we eat – overwhelmingly the most nutrient-dense fruits, nuts and vegetables we rely upon for our health. Additionally, insects and other invertebrates are vital for soil health, nutrient recycling, the control of crop pests, and as food for wildlife.   

According to a 2020 report by the World Economic Forum, more than half of the world’s GDP is highly or moderately dependent on nature. Additionally, a study published in Bioscience found insects alone are worth more than $57 billion ($70 billion 2020 valuation) a year to the U.S. economy.

LINK: 2020 report

LINK: Study published in Bioscience

Unfortunately, biodiversity is declining globally, faster than at any other time in human history, and keystone animals such as pollinators, freshwater mussels and other beneficial invertebrates are disappearing at alarming rates. A 2021 paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported that, where studied, insect abundance is declining on average 1% to 2% per year. For instance, one study found that numbers of common butterflies in Ohio have dropped by 2 percent yearly, resulting in a 33 percent decline over two decades. In another assessment, the United Nations Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services found that more than 40% of invertebrate pollinator species may face extinction in the coming decades.  Insects make up over 90% of animal biodiversity and perform many ecosystem functions, meaning the loss of insects has severe negative impacts on ecosystems.

LINK: 2021 paper

LINK: One study

LINK: Another assessment

Nature-based climate solutions offer a win-win for climate and biodiversity

Fortunately, adapting programs like the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities to more fully support biodiversity can help address these alarming declines while also keeping the focus on climate change and farm production.

The science is clear that: (1) Climate change and biodiversity loss are interlinked, and coupling climate mitigation targets with ecosystem-based approaches is essential; and (2) It is impossible to address the loss of biodiversity without addressing climate change, but equally impossible to tackle the full impacts of climate change without working to protect and enhance biodiversity.

Proponents of regenerative agriculture and climate-smart farming note – rightly so – that many of the core regenerative practices improve biodiversity. Continuous vegetative cover of crop fields, reduced tillage, and diversified crop rotations are all practices that lead to more soil invertebrates and more blooms to support pollinators and other beneficial insects. However, the species we see in these environments tend to be more common species, resources such as pollen and nectar may be short-lived, and – with a focus on just cropland – all of these animals are in a landscape with higher risk of pesticide exposure. Thus, we believe climate-smart agriculture needs to incorporate a broader suite of nature-based climate solutions to be most impactful.

Nature-based climate solutions involve actions that both mitigate climate change and protect and restore wild nature. These practices can range from simply protecting as much of the natural landscape as possible, to managing, restoring and/or enhancing natural or semi-natural ecosystems in forests, on farms, along roadsides, along stream corridors, and in towns and cities. Trees and agroforestry are an essential part of this solution, but so are meadow plantings and hedgerows on farms.

Broadly speaking, regenerative agriculture and nature-based climate solutions both involve conserving, restoring, or better managing ecosystems (farms or nature) to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. A 2017 study in the Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences found that cost-effective nature-based climate solutions could contribute about 20% of the mitigation needed between now and 2050 to keep global warming below 2°C.  They also provide a wide range of other important benefits, such as cleaner air and water, economic benefits, and increased biodiversity.

LINK: 2017 study

Interspacing cropland with natural habitat brings benefits

However, nature-based solutions elevate biodiversity conservation well beyond what is achievable through regenerative agriculture.  One important difference is that the focus of regenerative agriculture is primarily in cropland alone.  Agricultural nature-based climate solutions focus both on cropland as well as around the edges of farms to provide permanent habitat for beneficial insects and other wildlife. This permanent habitat has been shown to attract a broader array of beneficial insects and, over time, diversity and abundance are higher in these areas.  These areas can include resources that are not found in most regenerative agriculture projects including host plants for butterflies, specific native wildflowers used by specialist bees, nesting and overwintering habitat for bees, butterflies, and beneficial insects, as well as habitat for birds and other wildlife.

The USDA, through the Natural Resource Conservation Service, already supports many biodiversity-focused nature-based climate solutions, and there are positive movements within the food industry to further accelerate adoption of these practices. Best of all, none of these approaches are overly complex and they fit well with regenerative agriculture approaches. Here are some of the fundamentals:

One important additional benefit shared by all of these practices listed above is that they increase habitat connectivity across farm landscapes. In the face of a changing climate, insects and other beneficial wildlife need easy access to ever-shifting nesting and food resources. There is evidence that some pollinators are shifting ranges in response to climate change, and linear habitats such as field borders, hedgerows, riparian zones, and other green corridors provide the connections necessary for pollinators to move across the landscape. A soon-to-be-released study by the University of Nevada Reno and the Xerces Society finds that even in highly fragmented landscapes, connectivity is possible, especially utilizing the restoration or improvement of agricultural margins.

Nature-based climate solutions are more than just solutions to climate change or the biodiversity crisis. They are also solutions to many of the other challenges we face when managing 40% of the Earth’s surface for agriculture, ranging from water protection to rural quality of life. Building this foundation into the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program and elsewhere in our farm conservation economy is the most clear-eyed path we have to continue feeding the world – the human world of course – but also the world of our great companions, the bees, butterflies, fireflies, songbirds, gamebirds, fish, and so much more.

By Scott Hoffman Black, Eric Lee-Mäder and Mace Vaughan on 21. April 2022

Further reading:

Download our fact sheets on creating climate-smart habitat on farms, rights-of-way, towns and cities, and natural areas.

LINK: Farms

LINK: Rights-of-way

LINK: Towns and cities

LINK: Natural areas

Find other articles on the Xerces blog related to climate change.

LINK: Xerces blog related to climate change

Notice: Below is a list of 12 important links included on this page.

1. Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities

2. 2020 report

3. Study published in Bioscience

4. 2021 paper

5. One study

6. Another assessment

7. 2017 study

8. Farms

9. Rights-of-way

10. Towns and cities

11. Natural areas

12. Xerces blog related to climate change

Please note that while screen readers have made significant strides, they may still lack full support for optimal web accessibility.

A recent development in agriculture has been the rise of climate-focused farming, sometimes called regenerative agriculture, carbon-farming, or climate-smart agriculture. Whatever we call it, this philosophical approach is often presented as a menu of practices that promote soil building as a way to keep carbon in the ground to help avoid the climate crisis.

Agriculture is the single largest land use on the planet, with more than 40% of the Earth’s surface devoted to crops or grazing. Because of this, what we do on farms and with our soil can be an important part of society’s effort to curb climate change. Beyond climate, these efforts help rebuild and sustain the world’s invaluable soil resources, improve the drought resilience of cropland, prevent erosion, improve water quality, and much more.

One important recent development is a new competitive grant fund called Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities.  Launched by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, it will invest up to $1 billion for pilot projects that accelerate climate-smart farming practices. These include approaches that further reduce tillage, increase cover crop adoption, and scale up concepts such as agroforestry and silvopasture. 

This funding is a great step in addressing the nexus between agriculture and climate. But there is another, equally central, but often overlooked factor in this equation: To fully address climate change and sustain agriculture in an unstable climate, we must also address the biodiversity crisis. By making biodiversity conservation a part of regenerative farming and including it in funding options like the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program, the agricultural sector can tackle both the climate crisis and the biodiversity crisis simultaneously.

Like climate change, biodiversity is linked with global stability

Biodiversity – the diversity within species, between species, and of ecosystems – is critically important to human health and safety as well as to our economy. Protecting biodiversity is also vital in our effort to address climate change. The more biodiverse a system is, the better the animals and plants that live in these systems can adapt and survive changing conditions. More directly: biodiversity underpins global nutrition and food security.

This fact guides everything we do at Xerces. Insects and other invertebrates represent by far the largest share of animal diversity on the planet, and these small animals provide many services.  For instance, pollinators are responsible for 1 in 3 bites of food we eat – overwhelmingly the most nutrient-dense fruits, nuts and vegetables we rely upon for our health. Additionally, insects and other invertebrates are vital for soil health, nutrient recycling, the control of crop pests, and as food for wildlife.   

According to a 2020 report by the World Economic Forum, more than half of the world’s GDP is highly or moderately dependent on nature. Additionally, a study published in Bioscience found insects alone are worth more than $57 billion ($70 billion 2020 valuation) a year to the U.S. economy.

Unfortunately, biodiversity is declining globally, faster than at any other time in human history, and keystone animals such as pollinators, freshwater mussels and other beneficial invertebrates are disappearing at alarming rates. A 2021 paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences reported that, where studied, insect abundance is declining on average 1% to 2% per year. For instance, one study found that numbers of common butterflies in Ohio have dropped by 2 percent yearly, resulting in a 33 percent decline over two decades. In another assessment, the United Nations Intergovernmental Science-Policy Platform on Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services found that more than 40% of invertebrate pollinator species may face extinction in the coming decades.  Insects make up over 90% of animal biodiversity and perform many ecosystem functions, meaning the loss of insects has severe negative impacts on ecosystems.

Nature-based climate solutions offer a win-win for climate and biodiversity

Fortunately, adapting programs like the USDA Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities to more fully support biodiversity can help address these alarming declines while also keeping the focus on climate change and farm production.

The science is clear that: (1) Climate change and biodiversity loss are interlinked, and coupling climate mitigation targets with ecosystem-based approaches is essential; and (2) It is impossible to address the loss of biodiversity without addressing climate change, but equally impossible to tackle the full impacts of climate change without working to protect and enhance biodiversity.

Proponents of regenerative agriculture and climate-smart farming note – rightly so – that many of the core regenerative practices improve biodiversity. Continuous vegetative cover of crop fields, reduced tillage, and diversified crop rotations are all practices that lead to more soil invertebrates and more blooms to support pollinators and other beneficial insects. However, the species we see in these environments tend to be more common species, resources such as pollen and nectar may be short-lived, and – with a focus on just cropland – all of these animals are in a landscape with higher risk of pesticide exposure. Thus, we believe climate-smart agriculture needs to incorporate a broader suite of nature-based climate solutions to be most impactful.

Nature-based climate solutions involve actions that both mitigate climate change and protect and restore wild nature. These practices can range from simply protecting as much of the natural landscape as possible, to managing, restoring and/or enhancing natural or semi-natural ecosystems in forests, on farms, along roadsides, along stream corridors, and in towns and cities. Trees and agroforestry are an essential part of this solution, but so are meadow plantings and hedgerows on farms.

Broadly speaking, regenerative agriculture and nature-based climate solutions both involve conserving, restoring, or better managing ecosystems (farms or nature) to remove carbon dioxide (CO2) from the atmosphere. A 2017 study in the Proceedings of the Natural Academy of Sciences found that cost-effective nature-based climate solutions could contribute about 20% of the mitigation needed between now and 2050 to keep global warming below 2°C.  They also provide a wide range of other important benefits, such as cleaner air and water, economic benefits, and increased biodiversity.

Interspacing cropland with natural habitat brings benefits

However, nature-based solutions elevate biodiversity conservation well beyond what is achievable through regenerative agriculture.  One important difference is that the focus of regenerative agriculture is primarily in cropland alone.  Agricultural nature-based climate solutions focus both on cropland as well as around the edges of farms to provide permanent habitat for beneficial insects and other wildlife. This permanent habitat has been shown to attract a broader array of beneficial insects and, over time, diversity and abundance are higher in these areas.  These areas can include resources that are not found in most regenerative agriculture projects including host plants for butterflies, specific native wildflowers used by specialist bees, nesting and overwintering habitat for bees, butterflies, and beneficial insects, as well as habitat for birds and other wildlife.

The USDA, through the Natural Resource Conservation Service, already supports many biodiversity-focused nature-based climate solutions, and there are positive movements within the food industry to further accelerate adoption of these practices. Best of all, none of these approaches are overly complex and they fit well with regenerative agriculture approaches. Here are some of the fundamentals:

• Native plant hedgerows:  Hedgerows have been part of Europe’s agricultural landscape for thousands of years. If a diversity of flowering, climate-adapted plants are used, hedgerows can capture carbon, increase biodiversity, and provide benefits to farmers by increasing pollinators and natural enemies of crop pests.
• Wildflower meadows/flowering field borders: Prairie wildflowers and grasses are not only essential for increasingly rare grassland birds, butterflies, and native bees; these deep-rooted plants capture enormous volumes of carbon, help improve water infiltration, and have created the most productive soils on Earth.
• Buffers on riparian and other water courses:  Planting or managing native herbaceous or forest habitat as buffers along waterways can create layers of habitat, prevent soil and nutrient runoff, and even shade streams to help mitigate the impacts of climate change.
• Maximize plant diversity in CRP lands: Conservation Reserve Program set-asides can be an important part of addressing climate change in agriculture.  Adding additional floral diversity to these plantings can help insects, birds, water quality and more.
• Beetle banks and insectary strips: This conservation biological control approach provides supplemental nectar, pollen, and habitat and increases the diversity and abundance of natural enemies of crop pests.

One important additional benefit shared by all of these practices listed above is that they increase habitat connectivity across farm landscapes. In the face of a changing climate, insects and other beneficial wildlife need easy access to ever-shifting nesting and food resources. There is evidence that some pollinators are shifting ranges in response to climate change, and linear habitats such as field borders, hedgerows, riparian zones, and other green corridors provide the connections necessary for pollinators to move across the landscape. A soon-to-be-released study by the University of Nevada Reno and the Xerces Society finds that even in highly fragmented landscapes, connectivity is possible, especially utilizing the restoration or improvement of agricultural margins.

Nature-based climate solutions are more than just solutions to climate change or the biodiversity crisis. They are also solutions to many of the other challenges we face when managing 40% of the Earth’s surface for agriculture, ranging from water protection to rural quality of life. Building this foundation into the Partnerships for Climate-Smart Commodities program and elsewhere in our farm conservation economy is the most clear-eyed path we have to continue feeding the world – the human world of course – but also the world of our great companions, the bees, butterflies, fireflies, songbirds, gamebirds, fish, and so much more.

By Scott Hoffman Black, Eric Lee-Mäder and Mace Vaughan on 21. April 2022

Further reading:

Download our fact sheets on creating climate-smart habitat on farms, rights-of-way, towns and cities, and natural areas.

Find other articles on the Xerces blog related to climate change.

The post Intrinsically Linked: Why Climate-Smart Agriculture Must Not Neglect Biodiversity appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

July 15, 2021

Beginning in 2021, EPRI will begin a two-year effort with Xerces Society to develop a nationally recognized third-party verified Bee Better Certification program for electric power companies. We anticipate this initial effort to include solar sites, rights-of-ways, substations, and possibly more. EPRI and Xerces will work with ecologists, entomologists, power companies, solar developers, and other experts to develop a certification that is applicable, usable, and ecologically robust. We anticipate the new certification to be released in 2023 or 2024, followed by training for third-party verifiers.

LINK: Bee-Better-Certification-for-Electric-Power-Companies-PDF

LINK: Download

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LINK: Click here to read more about the project’s launch

LINK: Production Standards

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1. Click here to read more about the project’s launch

2. Production Standards

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Despite the setbacks and challenges brought to every industry by the pandemic this year, our staff has been working closely with four different vineyards in three major winegrape regions of California providing both technical and financial support to help these vineyards achieve Bee Better Certification. This work is a continuation of our efforts to expand Bee Better Certified (BBC) within the wine industry (click here to read more about the project’s launch). After months of planning and preparation, we broke ground (literally) on these projects this fall. Throughout the month of October, Bee Better and Xerces Society staff, farm labor crews, and volunteers planted the equivalent of almost a mile of high quality pollinator habitat at the four participating farms. This floral-rich habitat includes a diversity of native plants that will provide pollen and nectar throughout the season and includes host plants for declining species such as the monarch butterfly.  Locally sourced native plants are sorted and ready to be installed on planting day.  (Photo:  Jessa Kay Cruz). Once the fall rains begin, participating vineyards will also be planting nearly 20 acres of insectary and pollinator cover crops across their vineyards. Blooming cover crops that achieve at least 50% bloom before they are terminated qualify as Temporary Habitat under the Bee Better Certified Production Standards.  Bee Better growers protect both permanent and temporary habitat from pesticides to reduce the impact on visiting pollinators and other wildlife.  For example, blooming cover crops must be past bloom or mowed at least 24 hours before crops are sprayed. In addition to creating habitat, certification requires growers to adopt rigorous pesticide risk mitigation practices including discontinuing the use of high risk pesticides, reducing drift, adopting non-chemical pest management practices and including a robust scouting and monitoring protocol as part of their pest management strategy. This ensures that the habitat planted will be protected from pesticide contamination and makes the vineyards overall a more friendly place for pollinators.   Once all planting is complete, each vineyard will have at least 5% of their total acreage in pollinator habitat.  Each farm, vineyard, and orchard that commits to maintaining 5% of their total acreage in pollinator habitat brings us one step closer to creating an agricultural landscape that is better for bees and other wildlife. Freshly planted permanent habitat at Shakeridge Ranch just outside of Sutter Creek, California.  (Photo:  Jessa Kay Cruz / Xerces Society)  

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Do you have avocados on your counter, in your refrigerator, or in your lunch? When you next visit your local market or grocery, take a look at where the avocados for sale are grown. In many instances, the answer is Mexico, as it is the world’s largest producer. However, as the world’s appetite for avocados grows, production in other regions continues to grow along with it. One company that is helping to meet demand for the fruit is a Peruvian grower, the Ica-based Agrolatina. The difference with this grower is that they are working to build a healthy resilient ecosystem around their avocado orchards to ensure good pollination and they are doing this through  Bee Better certification. Ica, which is a name shared among a city, province and region, is located in southeastern Peru, between the Pacific ocean and the Andes mountain range. This is one of the most  arid deserts in the world, with annual precipitation of less than one inch. Much of the moisture that supports crops and natural vegetation comes in the form of fog. Intermittent rivers are also a source of water for irrigation. The dry, sunny climate with low temperatures bottoming out well above freezing make the area suitable for growing many crops including grapes, asparagus, pomegranates and mangoes. The legacy of the local Nazca culture and current generations of people who live in this environment share a knowledge of how to grow food, fuel and fodder in a desert. Indeed, smallholder farm plots generate and conserve much of the region’s biodiversity. An emblematic and keystone species in this system is the Huarango tree (Prosopis limensis). This legume tree captures the moisture in fog and transfers some of it to its root zone, creating a more hospitable space for more plants, animals and people to live. The distinct climate also means that the area’s wildlife and plant species are uniquely adapted to extreme aridity, many of them endemic – occurring nowhere else in the world. The intensive agriculture of Ica threatens this biodiversity, but also presents an opportunity to conserve and connect the existing strips of forest that naturally occur along watercourses. Local conservation organizations, Huarango Nature and Conservamos Ica (CONICA) have been documenting the plants and animals – including insects of the region. Surveying the local biodiversity has been a key portion of the conservation efforts in the region. Photo: Campsomeris (Scoliidae), new wasp record in Ica, Huarango Nature© Under the request of Corporación Agrolatina, Huarango Nature and CONICA conducted a baseline study to document the existing plants and animals around the fields of avocado trees. This study formed the foundation of a restoration plan to create and manage pollinator habitat, one of the primary criteria under Bee Better Certified’s Production Standards. Photo: Thaumastura cora “Peruvian Sheartail” “colibrí de Cora” in native forest under restoration, Huarango Nature© A key aspect of this habitat restoration project is the local native plant nursery that will provide the native plants needed to link the remnant forests that border the avocado orchards.  This Centro de Conservación de Plantas CHAPI (CCP) has grown with decades of community engagement, technical capacity building and partnerships between Huarango Nature; CONICA; Agrícola Chapi; Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew; and Sainsbury’s (a British grocery chain).  The native plants sourced from this nursery will help support the diverse array of native pollinators that visit the region’s avocado orchards and provide their pollination services. Sourcing native plants is one of the requirements under the Bee Better Certified Production Standards. Photo: Native Plants (Tecoma, Prosopis and Parkinsonia) in CPP and Vivero Chapi-Sainsbury’s in Fundo Don Ernesto-Agrícola Chapi, Huarango Nature© This Bee Better habitat will support the region’s native pollinators that we are indebted to for the avocados at our local markets and in our lunches because like many of the foods we depend on for nutrition and sustenance, avocado flowers require insect pollination.

The post Bee Better Certified in South America appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

LINK: Info@beebettercertified.org

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As the harvest season nears its end in the Northwestern U.S., we hope the team at the Zirkle Fruit company will have some time to sit back and celebrate their recent achievements. One of these  is their expansion of Bee Better Certified blueberries and cherries.  Having worked closely with the folks at Zirkle Fruit for the last few years, our guess is that there won’t be too much time to rest and reflect–as a company at the forefront of innovation, there isn’t much in the way of down time. Rainier Fruit is one of the largest growers of organic tree fruit in the U.S. and with its continued commitment to sustainability and innovation, Bee Better Certified is a natural fit. “As a company based in the soil – both figuratively and literally – Rainier Fruit values opportunities that reduce our impact on the environment and wildlife. Our family has grown fruit for over a century, and the Bee Better program aligned with our desire to sustain our operation and the land we maintain for generations to come,” said Blake Belknap, VP of Sales Rainier Fruit.   Sweat bee on Golden Currant (Ribes aureum) near blueberry orchard, by Xerces Society / Kitty Bolte   The Zirkle Fruit Company and its packing and marketing division, Rainier Fruit, started out this year with an ambitious goal to bring a new crop of Bee Better Certified blueberries and cherries to market.  After thoughtful planning and site selection, they focused in on the crop lands where they thought they could make the biggest improvements for pollinators. Through this process, they ultimately restored healthy habitat for bees by installing nearly 5 acres of native flowering shrubs and wildflowers, as well as 8.5 acres of cover crops. They also modified their use of pesticides to meet Bee Better requirements, providing robust protection for bees and other beneficial insects. Amazingly, they did all of this — resulting in over 300 acres of Certified blueberry and cherry orchards — in under 5 months! Rather than calling it good, rumor has it, they already have even more great things in the works.   Zirkle Fruit apple orchard drive row in bloom, by Cameron Newell   For more information on the program or how to get certified please contact the team at Bee Better Certified: info@beebettercertified.org  

The post A Bee Better Harvest appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

Path to Bee Better Certified

Ingredients they grow

Partners in the supply chain

LINK: The Vilicus Farms website

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1. The Vilicus Farms website

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    Vilicus, the name chosen by Doug Crabtree and Anna Jones-Crabtree for their farm in the Northern Great Plains, means “steward of the land.”  This name represents their view on how land should be managed in order to produce the food we eat. Since their initial purchase of their farm 11 years ago they have been managing their now nearly 10,000 acre organic dryland farm in exactly that way.  In the dry, windswept landscape of the Northern Great Plains, Anna and Doug decided early on that they wanted to work with the landscape, which in its natural condition is prairie, by restoring part of the natural legacy of the place.  The result is a staggering 26% of their farm in non-crop areas set aside to serve the creatures and natural processes that the farm relies on to stay resilient. This system works to improve soil and water quality, buffer from wind erosion, secure additional moisture from winter snow and support pollinators and other creatures, while producing healthy food for brands like Annie’s Homegrown, TImeless Natural Foods, and more. It was through this journey of land stewardship  that Anna and Dog were introduced to the Xerces Society and to Bee Better Certified.   Anna Jones-Crabtree (left) and Doug Crabtree (right) on their farm in Havre, Montana  (photos:  Jennifer Hopwood / Xerces Society)  

Path to Bee Better Certified

Vilicus Farms has led the industry with a conservation minded farming ethic, with their work featured extensively in national media, and in the groundbreaking book, The Lentil Underground. As a pilot farm under Bee Better Certified, their early adoption of the Bee Better standards is a perfect example of their commitment to large-scale regenerative agriculture. As part of the program Vilicus has installed over 1,200 acres of pollinator attractive cover crops and manages over 300 acres of native range and permanent pollinator strips within their farming operations. The requirement under Bee Better Standards is for a farm to have a minimum of 5% of the farm area in habitat–Vilicus has over 21% of their acreage in habitat. These habitat areas contain native prairie wildflowers that help to sustain pollinators through the season, provide nesting habitat, and protection from the elements.   In addition to adopting the certification practices, Anna volunteers her time, knowledge, and experience as a member of the Bee Better Advisory Board.  Her insights, guidance, and perspectives as a farmer are invaluable to our efforts as we work to expand and build this one of a kind certification in a way that benefits farmers and pollinators alike.  

Ingredients they grow

It is not uncommon to hear the question “why support pollinators when the crops we grow don’t need them?” This question applies to Vilicus Farms. With rotations of small grains(wheat, oats and rye), pulses (lentils, dry peas and beans) and oilseed crops,only a few of the crops benefit from  pollinators. But to Anna and Doug, being a steward of the land is not just about the season to season gain of these conservation practices.It is a long term effort that will reap rewards for the larger ecosystem.  

Partners in the supply chain

The Vilicus Farms website lists some of the best known companies and brands in the regenerative space including  Annie’s Homegrown, Timeless Natural Foods, and Iroquois Valley Farms and Grain Millers. Anna and Doug also work to build community, operating an apprentice program to train a new generation of regenerative farmers, and building an ever-growing network of like-minded organic farmers and companies who are redefining agriculture.  They’re exactly the kind of farm that represents the Bee Better Certified values. Vilicus Farms can and does offer direct CPG/food manufacturer/processor contracting on their organic and Bee Better Certified crops. Their typical annual rotations include: red winter wheat, rye, oats, yellow peas, green lentils, oats and hulless oats, red spring wheat, soft white spring wheat, flax and buckwheat. They also have extensive experience with chickpeas, spelt, sunflower, canola, and more.     

The post Vilicus Farms: Growers of Bee Better Certified Specialty Grains, Pulses, and Oilseed Crops appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

LINK: Formal standards for Bee Better Certified

LINK: Basic requirements

Why third-party certification?

Further Reading

LINK: Bee Better Certified program

LINK: Production standards

LINK: Apply to become Bee Better Certified

Notice: Below is a list of 5 important links included on this page.

1. Formal standards for Bee Better Certified

2. Basic requirements

3. Bee Better Certified program

4. Production standards

5. Apply to become Bee Better Certified

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  Four years ago, we began to hear the same question from a number of food companies that wanted to do more for pollinators: Could Xerces develop a certification program to verify pollinator conservation practices on farms and provide a transparent way for consumers to recognize and differentiate food products produced in ways that are better for bees? There was lots of interest and excitement about this at Xerces, but there was also a lot of work to figure out whether this would truly work. As a first step, we wanted to evaluate what meaningful pollinator protection on farms would mean:           – How much habitat is needed to be truly meaningful for pollinators on farms?           – Could we have both permanent habitat and ephemeral habitat, like cover crops?           – What would farmers need to do to protect habitat from pesticides and what kinds of measurable pesticide reductions should we call for?           – How could we make this both high quality and allow some flexibility for farmers?           – Could we design a science-based program that would work for almonds, blueberries, apples, grapes, or virtually any plant-based farm system?           – Finally, what should we call this certification system to reflect our goal of trying to create better places for bees?   A California carpenter bee (Xylocopa californica) foraging on Cleveland sage. Permanent, high-quality habitat protected from pesticides is a key requirement to achieve Bee Better Certified approval. The production standards that growers must meet were developed from years of scientific research in the field. (Photo: Xerces Society / Cameron Newell.)   The last question turned out to be the easiest one to answer—Bee Better Certified! Finding answers to our other questions was a longer process. We reviewed hundreds of scientific articles to identify key habitat implementation and pesticide mitigation techniques that supported pollinators. We then convened a committee of some of the top pollinator scientists in the world to get feedback to ensure our approach was rigorous. We also knew that if this approach was going to work we needed advice from farmers. Fortunately, Xerces has a long history of working with farmers, having collaborated with and provided technical assistance to thousands of growers producing a large variety of crops. We tapped into this expertise to ensure that the certification would be meaningful for bees and implementable To round out our team of experts, we recruited food industry experts as advisors, and most importantly, an independent third-party certifier, Oregon Tilth. The participation of the latter ensured that our system would have independent verification, including farm-level inspections and auditing.   Hedgerows are a traditional part of agricultural landscapes. Rethinking them with shrubs and perennial plants that provide abundant flowers through the growing season is an effective way to create permanent habitat that transforms farms to the benefit of pollinators. (Photo: Xerces Society / Cameron Newell.)   As we developed the formal standards for Bee Better Certified, we vetted each draft with our science and farming advisors. Note that I use the word “standards”. High quality certifications use standards—which are required—as opposed to guidelines or “best management practices”, which can be good but are distinctly different from required standards. Finally, Oregon Tilth evaluated the standards to ensure that each one was verifiable during their on-site inspection process. We launched Bee Better Certified three years ago this week with the following basic requirements:           – Maintain 5% of the land (at minimum) as habitat, which can be a mixture of permanent features, such as hedgerows, and temporary resources, including flowering cover crops.           – Flowers that bloom throughout the growing season.           – Nesting sites including plants with pithy-stems for cavity-nesting bees, and undisturbed soil for ground-nesting bees.           – A comprehensive pesticide reduction and management framework that includes IPM-style monitoring, the use of non-chemical practices, pesticide drift reduction, and pesticide buffer zones, and  limitations and restrictions on the most high-risk pesticides.   This bird’s-eye view of a Bee Better Certified almond orchard in California’s Central Valley shows a maturing hedgerow (at bottom) that was planted to provide habitat next to the rows of almond trees. (Photo: Xerces Society / Cameron Newell.)  

Why third-party certification?

When we began developing Bee Better Certified, we had many discussions about the benefits of third-party certification. All major certifications follow a third-party accreditation process. This includes manufacturing—your water saving toilet is third-party certified as are most drinking-water filters, commercial foodservice equipment and a wide array of consumer products such as bottled water, medical equipment, and home appliances as well as food products through certifications like USDA Organic and Fair Trade. Even professionals such as emergency medical technicians and institutions such as schools are third-party certified to ensure they meet standards for excellence and are worthy of public trust. Third-party certification means that an independent organization inspects every Bee Better Certified farm to ensure that the standards are met: the required habitat exists, appropriate plants are in bloom, nest sites are present, and pesticide reduction practices are being implemented. The result is a process that is transparent and provides a fair playing field for everyone who opts in. Without third-party certification, there is no guarantee of compliance, or that the standards are being interpreted and implemented consistently.   The prominent black-and-white Bee Better Certified seal identifies these tubs of ice cream as having been made with almonds from a certified grower. (Photo: Xerces Society / Cameron Newell.)   So why is Bee Better Certified the best pollinator certification program in the world?           – It is science based: Peer-reviewed research is backed up by top pollinator experts and farmers.           – It is third-party certified: It demonstrates independent validation and verification of our commitment to high-quality habitat on every farm.           – It protects the enrolled farmers: By providing a level playing field, everyone is evaluated equally through the same process.           – It guarantees retailers and consumers that a certified product actually is creating better places for bees. With growing interest and adoption by farms in multiple countries, an expanding number of crops are now Bee Better Certified, and products such as wine, ice cream, and fresh produce can now be found displaying the Bee Better Certified seal in major retailers. In short, if you purchase a product that has the Bee Better Certified seal, you can trust the certification and know that these products are leading to high-quality habitat for bees and other pollinators.  

Further Reading

Read more about the Bee Better Certified program Learn about the Bee Better Certified production standards Find out how to apply to become Bee Better Certified

The post Bee Better Certified: Protecting Bees and Providing a Level Playing Field for Farmers and the Companies that Support Them appeared first on Bee Better Certified®.

Notice: Below is a list of 0 important links included on this page.

Please note that while screen readers have made significant strides, they may still lack full support for optimal web accessibility.

Year three has been full of excitement and growth for Bee Better Certified.  In addition to hosting field days and celebrating the launch of newly certified products, we are continuing the expansion and exploration of Bee Better Certified across a diverse array of cropping systems. With over 600,000 acres of winegrape vineyards in California, this industry seems like a great fit for Bee Better Certified.  The winegrape industry has shown a strong interest in protecting pollinators and promoting natural enemies and has a history of working closely with Xerces and other wildlife conservation partners. The unique direct-marketing of wine provides a close connection between producer and consumer, increasing the likelihood of successful adoption of a certification program such as Bee Better. You might be thinking right about now that winegrapes are not pollinated by bees; and you’re right!  A great thing about Bee Better Certified is that the habitat and management practices required by the program help to support a wide range of other beneficial insects in addition to bees and other pollinators. These insects help to control pests in the vineyards, breakdown and cycle nutrients, and increase water infiltration–to name just a few benefits! In the fall of 2019, Xerces received a Conservation Innovation Grant (CIG) from the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) to demonstrate the benefits of Bee Better Certification within the wine industry.  By providing technical and financial support to bring these vineyards to certification, we hope to accelerate adoption of Bee Better Certification and NRCS wildlife and resource conservation goals across the industry. To kickoff the implementation stage of the project we conducted site visits at the five participating vineyards, spanning four different counties,to assess the potential for habitat and to discuss the pesticide practices outlined under Bee Better Certified.   Senior Pollinator Conservation Specialist Jessa Kay Cruz inspects a native plant hedgerow along with Ancient Oak Cellars owner Ken Moholt-Siebert.  Photo: Cameron Newell / Xerces Society   Temporary pollinator habitat can make up 4% of the habitat requirements for Bee Better Certified and is key in vineyards located in densely farmed areas such as Napa County.  Through this project we will work to develop seed mixes that flourish in vineyard conditions and support the wide array of beneficial insects found in these places. Xerces staff will also develop cover crop management recommendations that fit into existing vineyard practices and hopefully can later be adopted more widely throughout the industry. A certified vineyard must also have at least 1% in high quality permanent pollinator habitat.  With high pressure from powdery mildew and vine mealybug throughout much of central and northern California’s wine growing regions, practices to protect permanent pollinator habitat from pesticides are a key piece of meeting Bee Better Certified standards.  Vegetative drift barriers can greatly reduce pesticide drift and offer opportunity for installing permanent habitat in areas that otherwise would not meet pesticide buffer requirements under Bee Better Certified. Habitat plans have been developed for the participating vineyards and the important work of site preparation, such as mowing and weed removal, has already begun at many of the sites.  Site preparation will continue through to this fall, when we will begin the habitat planting phase upon the completion of the season’s grape harvest.  

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