Burt's Bees® Wild For Bees® Program Protects Nature's Tiny Foodies

National Pollinator Week Collaboration Includes Pollinator Partnership and InterContinental® Hotels & Resorts Brand

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Jun 18, 2013, 12:03 ET

DURHAM, N.C., June 18, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Ever wonder who's really behind the "foodie" culture that's swept the nation? Farmers and chefs, yes, but their crafts wouldn't be the same without the labors of the humble honeybee. This petite yet powerful pollinator is responsible for one-third of the tastiest and most nutritious foods we consume. Due to poor nutrition and a number of challenges, honeybees have been facing rapid declines since 2006, and losses this winter affected 31.1 percent of all colonies in the U.S.

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In observance of the bee's crucial role in our food-centric culture, this June 17^th – 23^rd for National Pollinator Week, Burt's Bees is giving everyone a couple simple ways to help protect bees. First, Burt's Bees is giving away 85,000 bee-friendly wildflower seed packs through its website—to help people populate the planet with the foods bees love because bees are foodies too! They need a variety of flower food, like nectar and pollen to thrive—and it's in short supply, which is why Burt's Bees aims to create 10,000 acres of healthy pollinator forage by 2020 through sustainable agriculture and pollinator forage projects funded through the Burt's Bees Greater Good Foundation.

As Pollinator Partnership's Executive Director, Laurie Davies Adams, explains, "Each of us lives in a habitat, and we have the opportunity to invite pollinators to share it with us. By sharing a bit of lawn, a school yard, a farm border, or an office landscape with pollinator-friendly plants, we create a connection that supports the very plants and pollinators that feed us."

Additionally, Burt's Bees is enlisting beekeeping chefs from the InterContinental Hotels & Resorts brand to serve up mouth-watering "bee-pollinated" recipes—everything from Farro Risotto to Pear Almond Tart—all inspired by the hotels' own rooftop apiaries. The bee-inspired signature menu is available during National Pollinator Week at the InterContinental New York Times Square, New York Barclay, Boston and Cleveland hotels. The recipes will also be available at www.burtsbees.com/wildforbees, for people to enjoy and share to help broaden awareness of the bee's plight.

"A major part of our hotel and the InterContinental brand identity is rooted in our commitment to sustainability," says InterContinental New York Times Square Executive Chef Andrew Rubin. "We are proud to collaborate with Burt's Bees on this project. As a Chef I feel quite passionate about raising awareness of bees and noting their impact to the gastronomic world. Our hotel apiaries further support this mission."

Burt's Bees continues to fund bee health research through the Honeybee Health Improvement Project, created in collaboration with the Pollinator Partnership in 2007 at the onset of Colony Collapse Disorder, to seek proactive solutions to the numerous threats facing bee populations.

"Bees are the reason Burt's Bees exists. Co-founder Burt Shavitz's hives made the wax in our first products—and bees continue to inspire our culture, our products and our vision for a more sustainable world," says Burt's Bees Director of Sustainable Business, Paula Alexander, and "A world without bees is simply unimaginable. We won't let it happen."

Eating good food is a wonderful part of our culture, but it wouldn't be possible without bees, so this National Pollinator Week, visit www.burtsbees.com/wildforbees to learn more and get involved.

About Burt's Bees
Burt's Bees has been offering earth-friendly, natural health and beauty care products for nearly 30 years. From a beekeeper's backyard in Maine to the leading edge of natural, Burt's Bees knows natural health and beauty care solutions from head-to-toe. The brand creates products for total skin health that keep The Greater Good™ top of mind. Burt's Bees has approximately 400 employees with products available in the United States and over 40 countries worldwide as well as on its website http://www.burtsbees.com.

About Pollinator Partnership
Established in 1997, Pollinator Partnership is the largest 501(c)3 non-profit organization dedicated solely to the health, protection, and conservation of pollinating animals. The Pollinator Partnership's mission is to promote the health of pollinators, critical to food and ecosystems, through conservation, education, and research. Visit www.pollinator.org to learn more.

About InterContinental Hotels & Resorts
The InterContinental Hotels & Resorts brand has 170 hotels located in more than 60 countries with local insight that comes from over 60 years of experience. As a brand, it believes that superior, understated service and outstanding facilities are important, but what makes it truly different is the genuine interest the brand shows in its guests. The brand's ultimate desire is to help guests make the most of their time. The hotel chain connects its well-traveled guests to what's special about a destination, by sharing its knowledge, so they enjoy authentic experiences that will enrich their lives and broaden their outlook. The InterContinental brand is committed to building and running more sustainable hotels through becoming one of the first hotel chain's to have Certified Green Restaurants^®in more than 95 percent of its hotels in the U.S. and Canada, and participating in parent company IHG^®'s Green Engage^® program, which encourages and provides guidelines for hotels to become more environmentally sustainable. For more information, visit http://www.ihg.com/intercontinental, https://twitter.com/InterConHotels or http://www.facebook.com/intercontinental.

SOURCE Burt's Bees