Birds and Bees: Bird Seed That Supports British Wildlife

The current plight of bees is a very topical, and indeed, critical, issue facing agriculture today.  This is a global issue with huge ramifications for crops, food and ecosystems, yet it is also an issue that we can help to overcome at (forgive the pun) ‘grass roots’ level.

I was recently contacted by the lovely folks at Birds & Bees bird seed, a new ethical birdseed company from Marcus Waley Cohen (founder of Firefly Drinks) and Upton Estate Manager, Rob Allan (Countryside Farmer of the Year 2012).

Birds and Bees actually started life ten years ago as a project to create some space on their farm for wildlife.  Back then, everyone was farming to the edge of every field; great for farming yields, but not so good for birds, bees and butterflies which had nowhere left to live.

Ten years later, Birds & Bees has over 150 acres of land dedicated to wildlife, home to thousands of species.   Every year they make the farm better for wildlife, but they realised that to make a bigger difference they needed to encourage more people to look after birds and bees in their own gardens, and more farmers to farm in a wildlife friendly way.   And with that, Birds and Bees was born.

They buy all of their British cereals from bird and bee friendly farmers and they have also dedicated to creating more habitats for wildlife - that's why they're planting one square foot of new wildflower meadow for every new customer who joins them this year.

I have already started using Birds & Bees in the London Vegetable Garden and I genuinely love the fact that not only does it help the many lovely birds in my garden (finches, nuthatches, blue tits, sparrows, robins) over the winter months, but the seed is produced in a way that is actively encouraging bees and wildlife back into British farmland and countryside – how good is that!

So please, if you’re looking for bird seed this winter, check out the great range of products over at http://www.birdsandbees.co.uk/.  There are plenty of offers in the shop, plus you can also earn £5 for yourself and £5 for a friend – click here for more details.