Bees are the sentinels of the ecosystem, the barometer for the condition of our territories. For this reason, the Consortium for the Protection of Finocchiona IGP promotes a project for the protection and proliferation of bees by donating three hives to a company that produces wild fennel, an essential element for Finocchiona IGP, to which it owes its name.

“It is a wonderful initiative – said the vice president and councilor for agri-food of the Tuscan Regional Council, Stefania Saccardi – and there are two main reasons. The first because it enhances excellence: starting from an ingredient that defines the identity of Tuscany, such as fennel, we arrive at the production of the finished product, specifically finocchiona, one of the flagships of Tuscan agri-food, which is increasingly having more success abroad. We are also trying to promote it overseas by activating a close collaboration with US authorities. The second reason is because it highlights the naturalness of the system. Thanks to the wisdom of the Consorzio della Finocchiona, what used to happen in Tuscan farms has been ideally reproduced, creating a balanced system just like the great Tuscan farmers have always created, capable of integrating supply chains and products. The result evidences how quality Tuscan farming is sustainable and respectful of the environment, in short, it is one with nature“.

This first donation will be followed by others. “Finocchiona IGP is formed from the close link with the territory and its fruits. The consortium wants to make sure that something comes back to the territory in terms of sustainability and ecology: the project seeks to protect the environment and help natural pollination thanks to the foraging bees of the hives“- says the President of the Consortium for the Protection of Finocchiona IGP, Alessandro Iacomoni. “With this project, we want to add value to the area in terms of maintaining biodiversity and preserving the environment. We must take care of what surrounds us: ‘we are what we eat’, explained the German philosopher Ludwig Feuerbach 160 years ago, and now everything we do in our daily lives is found within a much broader and complex framework. The environment that surrounds us is very delicate. A healthy, balanced and conscious lifestyle is combined with the importance of living in an environment that is equally healthy, ample and protected from the risks caused by pollution, pesticides and chemicals which are harmful to our soils and our waters. The recipe for Finocchiona IGP was born centuries ago from the knowledge of these territories, from knowing how to use the resources of fennel seeds and flowers spontaneously offered by Mother Nature, the same nature that asks us for help and protection today”, concludes Iacomoni.

Antonella Gerini, the Vice President of the Consortium for the Protection of Finocchiona IGP continues, “This is the consortium’s first step to urging all of us to have greater awareness and greater respect for everything around us, where the quality of what we eat and the environment in which we live are an essential combination. In the future, we want to place other hives in other areas of particular interest in collaboration with the Region, to preserve biodiversity and to give further value to our territories, thanks to the help of bees“.