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MORE THAN HONEY

Taking nature under our wing

MEIKO warewashing systems get dishes clean in canteens and restaurants all around the world. But there's something else we rely on every time we sit down for a meal: a functioning ecosystem. That's what paved the way for our MEIKO honey, a story that began several years ago when MEIKO acquired its very own bee colonies.

EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED

Bees are an important part of many ecosystems, but they are far more than just an indicator of a healthy environment. They pollinate crops and wild plants that provide food and shelter for many other species. Everything is connected.

ONE THIRD OF OUR FOOD

Approximately one third of global food production depends directly or indirectly on pollination by bees and other pollinating animals.

Source: FAO

MORE THAN 20,000 BEE SPECIES

There are more than 20,000 species of bee worldwide. The honeybee we all know so well is just one small part of this astonishing diversity.

Source: FAO

THREE TIMES
AROUND
THE GLOBE

To make a single 500g jar of honey, bees fly a combined distance of around 120,000 kilometres – the equivalent of three trips around the world.

Source: German Beekeepers' Association (Deutscher Imkerbund e. V.)

OUR BEE GUARDIANS

Some 300,000 bees live in MEIKO's colonies. For years, we've worked with Bernd Walz and his wife Roswitha to keep the bees healthy and thriving. This husband-and-wife beekeeping team look after our colonies with expertise built up over decades – and they always put the bees' welfare first. The result of all this work is genuine MEIKO honey that we are proud to give as a gift to our customers and business partners.

RESPONSIBILITY IN ACTION

You might be wondering what bees have to do with MEIKO. Well, we've realised that everything is connected. MEIKO gets dishes clean in canteens and restaurants all around the world. Our work depends on people eating – and on there being enough food to eat. Bees are a key element right at the start of that chain. Once you understand that, you have to step up and take responsibility. And that's exactly what we're doing.

Dr Thomas Peukert, CEO MEIKO Group

FROM HIVE TO HONEY JAR

Our bees collect nectar

The bees carry nectar back to the hive and store it in the cells of the honeycomb. Once the honey is ripe, they seal the cells with a thin layer of beeswax.

The honey harvest

Early in the morning, Bernd Walz takes out the full honeycomb frames and puts new frames in their place.

Separating the wax from the honey

Before the frames go into the honey extractor, the wax cappings have to come off. Beekeepers like to call this sticky mix of wax and honey "honey chewing gum".

Quality comes first

Quality control is carried out by the couple's daughter, Cassandra Walz. Among other things, she checks the honey's water content using an instrument called a refractometer.

Filling and labelling

Next, the honey is poured into jars under hygienic conditions, ready to be labelled.

Ready for honey lovers

The finishing touch comes from the people at Lebenshilfe Offenburg, a local organisation that supports people with disabilities. They give every jar its specially designed MEIKO label, making our partnership with Lebenshilfe an integral part of every jar of MEIKO honey.

DID YOU KNOW?

To give the bees the broadest possible choice of plants to pollinate, their colonies are moved to new sites at regular intervals. Roswitha and Bernd Walz carry out these relocations in the early hours of the morning, carefully following all the relevant guidelines. The surroundings and the flowers in bloom at each site are the factors that determine which variety of honey the bees make.

That's why MEIKO's colonies don't live on the company's premises all year round. They spend some of the time, especially the summer months, in places such as woodland, where the climate suits them better and there's a far more varied selection of food.

And the bees aren't the only ones that benefit from a change of location. As winter gives way to spring, the bees take their first cleansing flight: a quick trip outside to get rid of the waste they have been holding in during the cold months. In the car parks around MEIKO, this sometimes gave freshly washed cars a polka-dot pattern that nobody really wanted.

MORE THAN A HELPING HAND

Honey may be sticky, but it takes more than stickiness to get the labels onto the jars. That job requires care, precision and an eye for detail, and that's exactly what the people at Lebenshilfe Offenburg bring to the table.

They attach the specially designed MEIKO labels to each jar. But our partnership goes well beyond this one task: MEIKO and Lebenshilfe Offenburg enjoy the opportunity to work together in other areas too. It's a relationship that we truly value.

QUICKFIRE QUESTIONS:

Beekeeper Bernd Walz

The role bees play in our lives is almost invisible to most of us. What role do they play in your life?

Bernd Walz: My father was a beekeeper before me, and I grew up around honeycombs, wax, beehives and honey. I was fortunate enough to be allowed to help with beekeeping even as a kid, and bees are still a big part of my life today. It's a passion shared by both my wife and my daughter, Cassandra.

Why do you take care of MEIKO's bees?

Bernd Walz: Because I think it's great when a machine builder takes on responsibility beyond its core business. It's important to me that people understand the role bees play in our environment and what bees need to thrive. MEIKO gives us the chance to raise awareness of these issues, which is why I'm so glad to look after the colonies and share my knowledge and experience.

WORKING TOGETHER TO PROTECT SPECIES

MEIKO's commitment to helping bee colonies extends beyond its own beekeeping initiative. Together with Roswitha and Bernd Walz, our company supports a number of regional efforts to protect bees and other insects.

One example is MEIKO's support for the Durbach Beekeepers' Association (Imkerverein Durbach e.V.) in its fight against the invasive Asian hornet. These hornets threaten bee colonies and numerous other species of insect. MEIKO helped fund the protective equipment the association needed for this work.

INTRODUCING…

Her Majesty!

A queen bee's most important task isn't to produce honey, but to ensure the continued survival of the colony. A single queen bee can lay up to 2,000 eggs a day in spring and summer. She also decides whether each egg becomes a worker or a drone.

We like the personal touch at MEIKO, and that's why we've given the queens of our six bee colonies specially chosen names:

Each queen gets a coloured dot painted on her back by the beekeeper, so she's always easy to spot. That little dot is also the full stop on our story, which shows that there's far more to every MEIKO jar than just the honey it holds.

Rosel
Named after the wife of MEIKO founder Oskar Meier.

Meike
Just one letter different – but a fitting one.

Brummhilde
A legendary heroine – with added buzz.

Sabiene
A classic name for a bee.

Honey
Sweet by name, sweet by nature.

Beeatrix
As international as MEIKO itself.