[Pollinator] Bee Friendly Farming™ Initiative Expands to Canada

[Kimberley Fellows]

*Bee Friendly Farming™ Initiative Expands to Canada*

*(Monday, February 6, 2012: **Santa Rosa, California, USA and Waterloo,
Ontario, Canada*)—Partners for Sustainable Pollination (PFSP) today
welcomed Seeds of Diversity Canada (SoDC) as a major new ally in PFSP’s Bee
Friendly Farming™ (BFF™) initiative.


“We are thrilled that Seeds of Diversity Canada has joined with us in our
campaign to encourage actions to help our precious honey bees,” said Kathy
Kellison, PFSP founder and volunteer Executive Director.


The goal of the BFF™ initiative <http://www.pfspbees.org/bff.htm> ,
launched in 2010—and now in both the U.S. and Canada—is to increase public
awareness, recognize agricultural producers who provide forage for honey
bees and other pollinators, and encourage consumers to support
BFF-certified agricultural producers. BFF™ is an inclusive term that is
intended to recognize anyone who supports bees directly or
indirectly—farms, ranches, businesses, schools, local governments,
nonprofits, gardeners and beekeepers.


“We are so pleased to bring this program to Canada,” said Kimberley
Fellows, SoDC’s Pollination Outreach Coordinator.  “It's bee-friendly
*and*user-friendly. We all have the ability to do something to help
bees
flourish, whether we live on a farm or in the city, no matter where we work
and play.” Pollination Canada <http://www.pollinationcanada.ca/>, a project
of SoDC, features resources specific to the Canadian Bee Friendly Farmer™.


Certified growers and beekeepers are encouraged to use BFF™ labels and
signage in their marketing and outreach efforts. Annual certification
feeswill be used to support cost-growers planting additional bee
forage
. The U.S.-Canada BFF™ map is at http://pfspbees/BFFMap. BFF™ participants
also interact at http://www.facebook.com/BeeFriendly.


“I am delighted to report there are now nearly 150 certified BFF™
participants spread across 30 States, and the first four from Canada,” said
Kathy Lanterman, PFSP Treasurer and BFF™ Certification Coordinator.  “Bees
don’t know borders, and neither should our efforts to help them!”


 “As a CSA (Community Supported Agriculture) farmer, I'm excited about the
education potential of this certification—both for myself and for my
members,” said Angie Koch, Fertile Ground Farm, St. Agatha, Ontario. Koch
was the first Canadian to self-certify.  “I'm looking forward to hosting a
native flower planting and pollinator education work bee at my farm this
spring! I've already found my members to be curious and excited and am
hoping many of them will get involved."


Now we just need Mexico to join and make this venture North American in all
respects.

-- 

*K i m   F e l l o w s**
**Pollination Outreach Coordinator
*Seeds of Diversity <http://www.seeds.ca/en.php>/Pollination
Canada<http://www.seeds.ca/proj/poll/>
Semences du Patrimoine <http://www.seeds.ca/fr.php>/Pollinisation Canada
<http://www.pollinisationcanada.ca/>303-40 King Street South
Waterloo ON N2J 1N8 Canada
kim at pollinationcanada.ca**
<http://www.pollinisationcanada.ca/><http://www.semences.ca/>
<http://www.pollinisationcanada.ca/>
<http://www.semences.ca/>
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