Following the success of its limited-edition strawberries and cream sandwich, the retailer is now investing in precision pollination technology that monitors bee activity in real time to enhance fruit production and biodiversity
After creating a buzz over the past few weeks with its limited-edition strawberries and cream sandwich, Marks & Spencer says it now plans to combine AI technology and bumblebees to deliver bigger, tastier strawberries.
The retailer revealed it is working with a small group of growers on four farms to trial something called precision pollination, an innovative system that monitors and enhances bee activity and helps grow more fruit and higher-quality berries, as well as improving biodiversity.
The technology monitors bee activity in real time, and enables growers to introduce more bees where they are needed for pollination, for example by changing the location of hives, or adding plants that naturally attract them.
According to M&S, the four farms trialling the technique have seen their bee activity almost double.
Early results suggest it improves consistency of production by encouraging a more even spread of strawberries across trial areas, something that can mean more strawberries, more consistent sizes, or both.
Further data will be tracked throughout the season to fully understand the impact and benefit of the trial, the group added.
“M&S’s success as an own-brand retailer is borne from deep relationships with our supplier partners which supports a long-term approach to investment in innovation and quality, and a shared belief in the value of doing the right thing,” commented Victoria McKenzie-Gould, the retailer’s corporate affairs and ESG director.
“This same approach is helping us to become a Net Zero business by 2040 through our annual £1m Plan A Accelerator Fund, with which we fund new and small-scale or untested solutions in collaboration with our supply base.”
