CONSERVATION: Keep Bees Alive

267 species of bee live in the UK – one of the most recognised is the social honey bee which lives in colonies led by a queen bee who is supported by worker bees and drone bees.

In the past 5 years the bee population has decreased by a third. In the UK alone, 35 bee species are currently under threat of extinction and all bee species are facing serious threats to their survival.

Building works for houses/offices have destroyed bees’ natural habits – 97% of our vital grasslands and hedgerows have been lost in the past 60 years.

Increased use of pesticides, results in paralysis and eventual death.

Insects that would have kept parasite numbers under control are killed off by pesticides, allowing harmful parasites to flourish and bees under the influence of pesticides are less resistant to the harmful varroa mite – a parasite which can wipe out bee colonies.

Bees perform in the region of 80 percent of all pollination worldwide. A lone bee can pollinate a whopping 5,000 plants each day.

It is estimated that 30% of the world crops and 90% of the wild plants, need a pollinating insect like a bee to thrive.

One third of the food you eat is pollinated by bees, and if fresh fruit and veg doesn’t appeal to you think of the bi-products, avocado flowers are pollinated by honey bees, when the bees are gone that’s no guacamole with your nachos or fajitas.

Wind naturally pollinates Tomato flowers but is helped along tremendously by the bumblebee, bumblebee pollinated yields are larger both in size and quantity.

If tomato supplies dry up with the loss of the bumblebee, where’s the sauce coming from for your pizza base or bolognese sauce?

Scientists estimate that it would cost over £1.8 billion every single year to manually pollinate UK crops by hand. And that’s just the UK! Think of the cost implications on your favourite foods if artificial pollination has to take place!

Consider the knock on effects on animals, especially herbivores. many animals, including Safari Zoo Giraffes, consume alfalfa (AKA Lucerne), alfalfa is pollinated by bees.

Cotton plants depend on bees, their loss impacts the fashion industry and mass production of natural fabrics.

Canola is used to produce biofuel, the plants depend on bee pollination, the loss of bees reduces access to biofuel, increasing dependency on fossil fuels and adding further pressure on an environment which is already stretched to breaking point.

HABITATS – REPLACE THE HABITATS HUMANS HAVE STOLEN IN YOUR OWN GARDENS, PATIOS AND YARDS. BEE BOXES AND BUG HOTELS CAN BE PURCHASED BUT THEY CAN ALSO BE MADE FROM UNWANTED HOUSEHOLD ITEMS AND RECYCLED MATERIALS.

FOOD SOURCES – OFFER BEES AN ALTERNATIVE TO THE NASTY PESTICIDE LADEN CROPS BY PLANTING FLOWERS FROM THE RHS PERFECT POLLINATORS LIST TO ATTRACT OUR BUZZY FRIENDS. AND DON’T WEED YOUR GARDENS, BEES LOVE A GOOD DANDELION AND IN EARLY SPRING, WEEDS ARE OFTEN THE ONLY SOURCE OF FOOD FOR. BEES.

GIVE THEM A DRINK! AT THIS TIME OF YEAR, YOU MAY SEE A BEE CRAWLING, LOOKING LIKE HE IS STRUGGLING AND ON THE VERGE OF DEATH. THEY ARE NOT, THEY ARE JUST TIRED!


HELP REVIVE THEM BY MIXING TWO TABLESPOONS OF WHITE, GRANULATED SUGAR WITH ONE TABLESPOON OF WATER, AND PLACING THE MIX ON A PLATE OR SPOON AND ALLOWING THEM TO DRINK. THEY’LL BE BACK ON THEIR WINGS IN NO TIME!

AVOID THE USE OF PESTICIDES, FUNGICIDES OR HERBICIDES ON PLANTS OR IN YOUR GARDEN. CHECK ANY PLANTS YOU BUY ARE NOT PRE-TREATED WITH NEONICS PESTICIDES!


Tourism Observer

Chicken In Orange Sauce

This is one of those dishes that makes you feel quite pleased with yourself. Fast, easy, healthy, and more delicious than Chinese takeout – a series of winning propositions. You can prep pretty much all the ingredients ahead of time, making this a fantastic last-minute weeknight dinner.

The sweetness in the sauce makes this a dish that normally picky eaters will lean into. There’s plenty of sauce, too, which you’ll be happy about as you spoon it over hot rice or quinoa.

When you are feeding a group with one or more vegetarians in the mix, this kind of recipe makes life so much easier. Essentially you sauté up some chicken in one pan, some tofu in another, then divide up the simple sauce between the two.

Serve this meal with:

Clean & Spicy Asian Greens
Rice or quinoa

Chicken in Orange Sauce

Serves 6

3 cloves garlic, minced
3 tablespoons honey
1 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
3/4 cup orange juice, preferably fresh
1/3 cup reduced-sodium soy sauce, or 1/4 cup regular soy sauce plus 2 tablespoons water
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
3 tablespoons cornstarch
1 tablespoon finely minced peeled fresh ginger
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
2 pounds skinless, boneless chicken breasts or thighs, cut into 3/4-inch pieces (see Recipe Notes below for a tofu alternative)
Kosher or coarse salt
2 tablespoons canola or vegetable oil
4 scallions, white and light green parts, sliced
Hot cooked rice (brown or white) or quinoa, for serving

Toasted sesame seeds, for serving (optional)

Whisk together the garlic, honey, orange zest and juice, soy sauce, rice vinegar, cornstarch, ginger, and pepper in a small bowl. Set the sauce aside.

Season the chicken lightly with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a very large skillet or a wok over high heat. Add the chicken and sauté until it starts to turn white, 3 minutes. Add the sauce and scallions and cook until 
the sauce thickens and the chicken is cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes more.
Serve over hot rice or quinoa, with the sesame seeds sprinkled over if desired.
Recipe Notes

Tofu in orange sauce: Replace the chicken with 2 pounds extra-firm tofu, blotted dry and cut into 3/4-inch cubes. To get the tofu nicely browned, in Step 2, heat the oil in the skillet over high heat, and when very hot, add the cubes, which should sizzle and sear (watch for splattering). Cook the tofu, not moving it for at least 3 minutes, so it has a chance to brown on the bottom. Flip the cubes using a thin metal spatula (knowing some cubes will break) and continue to cook to brown the bottoms, 3 minutes more. Add the sauce and scallions and continue with the recipe.
If you want to make the dish half chicken and half tofu, use a pound of each, sauté them separately in two large skillets with a tablespoon of oil in each, and divide the sauce and scallions evenly between the pans. The cooking times are the same.
What the kids can do: Zest the orange and juice it (if you are using fresh juice). Kids of the right age can cut up the chicken (younger ones can tackle the tofu) with an age-appropriate knife.
Make ahead: The chicken or tofu can be cut up a couple of days ahead of time, and the sauce can be combined a couple of days ahead, and refrigerated, too.