For 25 years, Hamburg Airport has housed bee colonies on its premises, which not only produce honey but also monitor air quality as “bio-detectives”.
The project, which originally began with honey bees, was expanded ten years ago to include a wild bee project that was launched in collaboration with the German Wildlife Foundation. The aim is to provide more habitat for the endangered wild bee species. In recent years, the airport has implemented numerous measures to make the site more bee-friendly. These include sowing native wildflowers, creating nesting sites and building wild bee hotels. These initiatives are part of efforts to support the ecological balance in the region.
Regular tests of the honey by independent laboratories have always produced flawless results. The airport's honey, which is not sold but given away on special occasions, meets the strict requirements of the German Honey Ordinance and the guidelines of the German Beekeepers' Association. Wild bees, which play a key role in the pollination of flowering plants, particularly benefit from the expanded protective measures on the airport grounds. The project at Hamburg Airport is considered a pioneer and has now been imitated at other airports.
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