MeliBio, the world’s first food-tech company focused on creating real honey without bees, partnered with Eleven Madison Park to host an exclusive World Bee Day celebration. The high-level celebration showcased the award-winning bee-free honey at an intimate cocktail reception featuring a variety of beverages and live performance, followed by a delectable four-course lunch prepared by Eleven Madison Park chefs. Invited guests joined from around the world, including over two-dozen conservation leaders, investors, government officials, and creators.
World Bee Day, originally created in Slovenia, is the world’s only day of awareness for bees. Currently, over 20,000 wild and native bee species are endangered due to the effects of climate change and competition from commercially farmed bees – with a staggering 90% decline in the world’s bee population in recent years. Bees are essential for the existence of humankind and provide a crucial role in our ecosystem. As a result, the honey industry is now facing a highly volatile and dwindling supply chain, giving rise to the crucial innovation of bee-free honey products like MeliBio and creating a new future of honey.
“When our team heard Darko pitch MeliBio, we were all instantly impressed – not only with his presentation skills but how he’s harnessed plant science and microbiology-based proprietary technology to help save virtually all bee species that are being pushed out of their natural habitats,” says XRC Labs Founder & Managing Director, Pano Anthos. “Sustainability-focused startups always peak our interest. We’re thrilled to now have MeliBio in our Opportunity Fund and look forward to seeing them expand in a B2B context and beyond.”
