Justin's Goes Nuts for Bees for National Honey Month

Industry pioneer announces continued partnership with Honey Saves Hives campaign and releases their 2021 Corporate Social Responsibility Report

BOULDER, Colo., Aug. 25, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Justin's, a category leader known for crafting real food products that contribute to the world in a positive and meaningful way, today announced its continued support of Honey Saves Hives - a campaign from the National Honey Board to educate consumers on the important role honey, honey bees and beekeepers play in our day-to-day lives. Honey Saves Hives is the latest collaboration among Justin's ongoing corporate social responsibility efforts, which, in addition to pollinator conservation, include sustainable packaging and ingredients and hunger relief. Together, the goal of these initiatives is to make the world a more resilient, well-fed place. In an effort towards ongoing transparency, Justin's also announced the release of its annual 2021 Justin's Corporate Social Responsibility Report, which outlines progress in each of Justin's CSR areas.

"Honey bees are responsible for more than 35% of the foods we eat, and our team recognizes how connected and critical these pollinators are to our food system,¹" said Penny Andino, vice president of marketing at Justin's. "We are honored to continue our partnership with the National Honey Board's Honey Saves Hives campaign for the third year in a row, as we both share a common mission of protecting honey bees and our food supply. We're nuts for bees and collectively, we can all help save the pollinators."

Honey bees are important to our ecosystem as they pollinate a wide range of plants, including crops like almonds, apples and pumpkins.² For almonds, the primary ingredient in the brand's line of almond butters, protecting these buzzing bees is paramount as they are dying off at a 44% rate per year.³ That's why Justin's continues to join forces with national, state and local organizations that work to protect pollinators through habitat conservation and expansion, sustainable agriculture, research and education.

The National Honey Board's Honey Saves Hives campaign educates consumers on the various ways they can help protect and preserve pollinator populations, including by purchasing select made-with-honey products, like JUSTIN'S® Honey Almond Butter and JUSTIN'S® Honey Peanut Butter, during National Honey Month this September and beyond. In addition, throughout September, Justin's plans to encourage fans to show support for pollinators by entering a Bee Good giveaway on Instagram.

"We hope that our collective actions during National Honey Month will help elevate consumer awareness on the importance of honey bees, and share how a simple action, like purchasing products made with honey, can make a meaningful difference," said Margaret Lombard, chief executive officer, National Honey Board.

Justin's is not only dedicated to providing superior products with mindfully-sourced ingredients like organic honey, but also actively engages in corporate social responsibility efforts captured in their newly-released 2021 Justin's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Report.

"Why Not?! is our rallying cry for staying curious and challenging ourselves to be better," said Randy Simonson, president of Justin's. "It drives us as we push forward to make progress on CSR and related innovation initiatives."

Key impacts highlighted in the annual CSR report include:

• Pollinator Conservation - Justin's donated $61,000 to support pollinator conservation projects during 2021 through Xerces, National Honey Board and Project Apis m. partnerships.
• Packaging - Set a goal to reduce the amount of plastic used in nut butter jars by 30% by 2022, and continued to match 100% of the electricity used to produce all product caddies with renewable energy certificates.
• Food System Education - Justin's donated more than $40,000 to organizations that help people learn more about where their food comes from and how to source it more sustainably, including Whole Planet Foundation, Naturally Boulder, Thorne Nature Experience, and Growing Gardens.
• Hunger Relief - Justin's donated more than $15,000 and more than 4,100 meals to organizations that feed hungry kids and families in the U.S. through partnerships with Conscious Alliance and Frontline Impact Project.
• Ingredients - Always on the hunt for high-quality, sustainable ingredients, Justin's launched two new Non-GMO Project Verified products during 2021- Super Dark Chocolate Peanut Butter Cups and Super Dark Chocolate Espresso Almond Butter Cups. Justin's also continues to verify all new products through the Non-GMO Project and sources Organic Rainforest Alliance Certified™ Cocoa.

Established in 2004 in the home kitchen of health enthusiast Justin Gold, Justin's supports an on-the-go lifestyle with an extensive line of naturally delicious, high-quality nut butter, USDA-certified organic nut butter cups, and plant-based snacks. Justin's is known for delivering delicious taste, a 'one-of-a-kind' grind texture and convenient nutrition. For more information about how Justin's is building a collective that's nuts about making the world a more resilient, well-fed place, visit Justins.com, Facebook.com/JustinsNutButter, Instagram.com/Justins, TikTok.com/justinsbrand, and Pinterest.com/Justins

The National Honey Board (NHB) is an industry-funded agriculture promotion group that works to educate consumers about the benefits and uses for honey and honey products through research, marketing and promotional programs. The Board's work, funded by an assessment on domestic and imported honey, is designed to increase the awareness and usage of honey by consumers, the foodservice industry and food manufacturers. The ten-member-Board, appointed by the U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, represents producers (beekeepers), packers, importers and a marketing cooperative. For more information, visit www.honey.com.

¹ Source: Honey Saves Hives, National Honey Board
² Source: FDA.gov-Helping Agriculture's Helpful Honey Bees
³ Source: https://www.pollinator.org/

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Emma Feeney
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