Ella’s Kitchen partner with RSPB to protect the birds, bees, and bugs
Ella’s Kitchen and the RSPB have today announced a long-term partnership in response to the global biodiversity crisis.
The partnership will see the two organisations join together to protect and restore 30 million square feet (278 hectares) of UK wildflower meadows and grassland by 2030 – all in an effort to protect and restore the homes of birds, bees, and bugs.
It will also see the organic kid’s food brand collaborate with the RSPB to learn how Ella’s can embed nature further across its business.
The ‘30 by 30’ partnership follows worrying findings about the future of our pollinators and the decline of wildflower habitats in the UK.
30 by 30 partnership
Wildflower meadows are vital homes for bees, butterflies and other pollinating insects which support our food system. These pollinators are crucial to food security, contributing to the production of a third of the food we eat.
Healthy meadows and grasslands, especially ones rich in biodiversity, protect the environment against the impacts of climate change by storing carbon, improving water quality and acting as a flood defence. They also provide homes and an abundant food supply for birds and many other animals.
However, instead of expanding and protecting these habitats, we risk losing them entirely. The UK is listed as the worst in the G7 for the amount of wildlife and wild spaces lost due to human activity. The UK has lost 97% of wildflower meadows in the last century; equivalent to the loss of 3 million hectares, an area larger than the size of Wales.
Through a mixture of seed sowing, plug planting, and allowing natural regeneration, Ella’s Kitchen will support the RSPB to transform species-poor grassland into meadows alive with colour and buzzing with life. By planting a mix of wildflowers, like Buttercups and Yellow Rattle, these meadows will provide habitats for insects like the Green Hairstreak Butterfly, the only green butterfly native to the UK.
The partnership will also protect existing wildflower and grassland meadows, vulnerable to climate change and erosion. This includes protecting and maintaining the rare Scottish machair on the island of Tiree which is home to endangered insects, like the Great Yellow Bumblebee, one of the UK’s rarest bees, and the endangered Corncrake and Lapwing who rely on machair to feed and breed.
The first three years of the partnership will focus on the restoration and protection of 15 million square ft of land; followed by an ambition to deliver a further 16 million square ft by 2030. Throughout the partnership, RSPB will manage and monitor biodiversity change and species-richness across the project areas to measure its impact on birds, bees, and bugs.
Protecting the world for future little ones
The partnership forms part of Ella’s Big Pledge to Little People: a commitment to invest in the future to ensure every little one grows up on a healthy planet that has plenty of food and is buzzing with life.
Collaborating with a leading nature charity, Ella’s Kitchen also plans to use the knowledge, expertise, and networks of the RSPB to learn about how it can further embed nature throughout its business. It will also use the RSPB’s resources to support parents and their little ones to connect with nature and help protect wildlife across the UK.
The partnership builds on the company’s commitments to reduce their emissions and their work on nature to date. This includes setting a near-term science-based targets to reduce their carbon emissions; its work with rewilding and conservation partner Trees for Life; and its recent commitment to make nearly 75% of its pouches fully recyclable at kerbside by the end of 2024.
Mark Cuddigan, CEO of Ella’s Kitchen, said: “Nature and business go hand in hand. At Ella’s, we want to do everything we can to protect nature, our pollinators, and our little ones’ futures. By working with the RSPB not only can we help protect and restore vital wildflower habitats across the UK, we want to continue to learn about the challenges our little ones face and how we can tackle them.
“Across our business, from our partners and suppliers to parents and their little ones, we want to educate and inspire on the importance of nature in a sustainable food system. Only by acting together can nature win and we can help to ensure that every little one grows up on a healthy planet, that has plenty of food, and which is buzzing with life.
Beccy Speight, Chief Executive at The RSPB said: “Nature is facing many threats, from the destruction of habitats to pesticide use and climate change, resulting in problems like the loss of pollinators. But it’s not too late to intervene. Ella’s Kitchen is facing into these challenges through targeted action in this new partnership that is both good for nature and good for people.
“Businesses have a crucial role to play in addressing the dual nature and climate crises, and partnerships like this that seek to restore and sustainably manage ecosystems and restore the biodiversity that we all rely on are so important. I’m delighted to see our reserves working side by side with Ella’s Kitchen in their drive to help pollinators and feed future generations, while protecting and restoring spaces that are vital for nature.”
