- Jaguar Land Rover employees collect first honey harvest from on‑site apiary at Solihull
- Hives installed over three years housing approximately 150,000 honey bees
- Project supports employee wellbeing and enhances sustainability at the plant
- Part of a wider employee‑led initiative to establish apiaries across Jaguar Land Rover’s UK sites
Thursday 16th September 2021, Solihull, UK – Jaguar Land Rover employees at Solihull are producing honey as well as vehicles, with the first harvest from their on‑site hives.
Volunteer employee beekeepers have been caring for three hives in an apiary which has become home to around 150,000 bees since being installed in 2019. The project is intended to support wellbeing and promote environmental benefits.
Employees at Solihull also hosted children from nearby nursery, Busy Bees Discoveryland, helping them learn more about bees and how to look after them. The honey bee project is part of a wider employee‑led initiative to establish apiaries across Jaguar Land Rover’s UK sites.
The global Covid‑19 pandemic has highlighted the importance of being outdoors for mental and physical health. Mental health charities recommend spending time in green spaces, while the Government has announced additional funding for Green Social Prescribing – nature‑based activities such as beekeeping, to achieve positive mental wellbeing.
Dean Clarke, who works at Solihull and is a volunteer beekeeper at the plant, said: “It feels amazing to have collected our first harvest and to know the bees are happy and healthy in their new home.
“Beekeeping is brilliant for your mental health and wellbeing – as well as being great for the environment – so this is just the first step in our mission to providing a home for a million bees across all Jaguar Land Rover sites.”
Jaguar Land Rover Solihull has more than 13 acres of woodland and grassland. Earlier this year the plant marked ‘No Mow May’ by allowing grassy areas on the site to grow, to encourage wildflowers and provide food for pollinators.