CARLISLE, Pa. — The GIANT Company is mad as a hornet over the theft of three beehives from its corporate headquarters in Carlisle, and is alerting Pennsylvania beekeepers to keep an eye on their own hives and bee colonies.
An unknown suspect or suspects recently took the hives, which contained approximately 60,000 bees, from the GIANT headquarters on 1149 Harrisburg Pike, the company said.
“Bees are an essential part of our food supply chain and having these beehives were one way we were helping to address the declining bee population here in our hometown community,” said Jessica Groves, community impact manager at The GIANT Company. “We are extremely disappointed that this happened and are continuing to cooperate with Middlesex Township Police Department.”
GIANT has had beehives at its corporate headquarters since 2020, when it first introduced a pollinator-friendly solar field on the grounds. The solar field not only contributed clean energy, but also supported bee and pollinator populations it says are needed within the agriculture industry.
"While nearly one-third of the country’s food supply depends on pollinators, honeybee populations have been experiencing a decline for more than three decades," GIANT said in a press release reporting the theft. "Beekeepers across the United States lost an estimated 45.5% of their honey bee colonies from April 2020 to April 2021, according to the latest annual nationwide survey conducted by the University of Maryland-led nonprofit Bee Informed Partnership."
Anyone with information on the theft of GIANT's beehives is asked to call the Middlesex Township Police Department at 717-249-7191 or submit an anonymous tip online.