TopFruit joins our Trees for Bees

With Summer just around the corner we are buzzed to welcome TopFruit to our Hive!

TopFruit join us to support honey bees who are critical to the success of their business. 

Say Liza Matthews, Marketing Manager at TopFruit “At the heart of sustainability lies the desire to maintain a balance between the economic, environmental and social needs of our world today without compromising the opportunities of future generations.” It was for TopFruit a simple choice in their sustainability ethos to support a reforestation project that feeds honey bees, as Liza says “All our partners, whether they are breeders, producers, marketers or supermarkets are in some way reliant on honey bees and for that reason it was easy for us to choose to support a honey bee sustainability program.”  As Liz correctly states, the Boland Trees for Bees program allows for an immediate and measurable effect, planting trees today means making a difference today.  And immediacy is the issue with honey bees; we cannot wait for something to happen tomorrow, we need to make it happen today.  The Boland Trees for Bees program is exactly that solution.

The Bee Effect and our hive partners are looking forward to expanding our network with TopFruit with key projects planned around pollinator health and education.  The Trees for Bees program is our touch point into an expanded scope of value add to the agricultural sector and we intend to secure the stability of pollinator environments through our collaboration for nature, with nature and all our business partners. 

TopFruit believe that the Boland Trees for Bees program allows for an immediate and measurable effect, planting trees today means making a difference today. 

“The team at TopFruit all share the bond of a love for the land, and the business of farming. We are passionate about what we do, and with that passion comes the realisation that we have to do more, where we can. Honey bees are crucial for the fruit industry and we all know that honey bee numbers are declining and need our help, and that is why we choose to support a honey bee sustainability program.” There is a relevance to our commitment that ensures our commitment. 

TopFruit believes that partnerships with like-minded people are very important to them, and they are proud to be associated with Boland Cellar as the founding partner of Trees for Bees, a relationship which as Liza says “made it possible for TopFruit to join in this wonderful and much needed project.”

At the heart of our Boland Trees for Bees program lies the partnership between our like-minded brands.  We work together as a hive mind to create the awareness that is needed, and drive attention for change as it is seen to support honey bees. 

The Bee Effect is an award-winning Trust which is focused on education about honey bees, expanded haven projects for forage development and honey bee homing, as well as the continued drive to maintain awareness for the value that they play in the food security of the planet, not to mention the key role they play in supporting healthy biodiversity corridors.  The Bee Effect is committed to driving research and development in the industry and sits on the Western Cape Beekeeping Industry Association’s Sub-Committee for Forage, a key component of the Provinces strategy to support apiaries and the increase in honey bee numbers.  The Boland Trees for Bees program is endorsed by the association and is proudly part of the forage solution of the association.

“We love the holistic approach of The Bee Effect. They take action in all aspects of honey bee preservation, from reforestation, including the quality of honey bee nutrition, to the education of all involved,” notes Liza as a closing point. 

TopFruit was founded in 1983 by three nurserymen, Dr Jim Button, Richard Hill and Roy Jeffery, with the aim to more efficiently import, test and commercialise new fruit varieties in Southern Africa, which they have done with much success, as their years of experience, personal understanding of the agricultural environment, and the respect they have earned within the industry makes them international leaders in cultivar management.  Currently they represent Pome Fruit, Stone Fruit, Table Grape, Berry and Kiwifruit varieties from breeders the world over.  And of course the gorgeous Pink Lady apple which we have all come to know and love!