Justin’s, a category leader known for crafting delicious, real-food products that contribute to the world in a positive and meaningful way, today announced the launch of a new pollinator-friendly badge that will be showcased across all JUSTIN’S® packaging. The announcement is timed with National Pollinator Month (June) and signifies that many JUSTIN’S® products wouldn’t be possible without the help of pollinators. Consumers will begin seeing the pollinator-friendly badge on packaging this month, with complete rollout in the coming months varying by retailer and product type.
In addition to launching a new pollinator-friendly badge across packaging, Justin’s is celebrating National Pollinator Month by donating $25,000 to Project Apis m. to further fund research to improve bee health and vitality. This donation to Project Apis m. is part of $85,000 that Justin’s is donating in 2024 to support pollinator conservation efforts towards People & Pollinators Action Network, Growing Gardens and Xerces Society. Justin’s is also a proud, long-term supporter of the National Honey Board’s Honey Saves Hives, an annual campaign to educate consumers about the important role that honey, honey bees and beekeepers play in our daily lives.
To further build awareness and education on the need to protect pollinators, Justin’s is once again activating a digital campaign this National Pollinator Month. The campaign creatively showcases the crucial role that pollinators play in our food system, as demonstrated by a “Help Justin’s Help the Bees” video that asks viewers to watch what happens when Justin’s removes the one in three bites of food on restaurant diners’ plates that relies on pollination.
“We hope that by continuing to create awareness about the important role of pollinators in our food system, we can collectively help protect our buzzy little buddies,” said Penny Andino, vice president of marketing at Justin’s. “Pollinators are an essential part of the ingredients we use in our products and our food system overall. We’re proud to take National Pollinator Month as a time to celebrate their importance. Now with the introduction of our new pollinator-friendly badge, consumers can also identify that Justin’s supports pollinator protection year-round.”
Pollinators are vital to our food system. How can we help protect them?
One out of every three bites of food we eat depends on pollinators, like bees1, as they pollinate a wide range of plants we know and love, including crops like almonds2. In fact, about one-third of the human diet is derived from insect-pollinated plants, and honey bees are responsible for 80 percent of this pollination.3 However, due to a combination of climate change, pesticides, and habitat loss,4 honey bees are dying off at alarming rates. Between April 2022 and April 2023, U.S. beekeepers lost an estimated 48.2% of their managed honey bee colonies.5
With pollinators playing such an important role in many JUSTIN’S® products, Justin’s is committed to collaborating with national, state and local organizations that work to protect pollinators through habitat conservation and expansion, sustainable agriculture, research and education.
Justin’s Furthers Commitments to Environmental Sustainability
In addition to the brand’s pollinator conservation efforts, Justin’s is partnering with The Almond Project, a farmer-led organization created to pave the way towards a more resilient future for almonds. Justin’s joined this collective of brands, including Pacific Ag Management, Treehouse California Almonds, White Buffalo Land Trust, Simple Mills, Daily Harvest, and Cappello’s, as they have a shared mission to preserve natural resources, enable ecosystem regeneration, protect farming communities and ensure the livelihood of nutritionally-rich almonds for generations to come. The brand’s monetary support will go towards moving key projects forward throughout 2024, including exploration into certifications around regenerative almonds.
For more information about Justin’s commitments to supporting pollinator conservation efforts and the pollinator-friendly badge, visit the Justin’s website and JustinsNutsAboutBees.com.
1 Source: USDA.gov, May 2024
2 Source: Honey Saves Hives, 2024
3 Source: National Honey Board, May 2023
4 Source: Pollinator Partnership May 2023
5 Source: Bee Informed, June 2023
