CARLISLE, Pa. — Police in Carlisle, Pennsylvania, are investigating after they said someone stole approximately 60,000 bees from the GIANT Company headquarters.
The three stolen hives contained colonies of bees, and were taken from the headquarters sometime between Jan. 28 and Jan. 30, The Patriot-News reported.
In a press release, Jessica Groves, The GIANT Company’s community impact manager, Jessica Groves, said that “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,” WHP-TV reported.
GIANT has alerted beekeepers in the area to watch their own hives in the wake of the theft, WGAL reported. The bees have a monetary value of about $2,000.
The bees were introduced at the company’s headquarters two years ago, as part of a pollinator-friendly solar field to contribute to clean energy and support for bee and pollinator populations, WHTM reported.
Last year, beekeepers in Pennsylvania reported losing 41% of their hives’ populations, lower than the national average loss of about 45.5% between April 2020 and April 2021, The Associated Press reported. The loss of bee populations is concerning because approximately one-third of the U.S.’ food supply relies on bees to pollinate plants, The Patriot-News reported.