Bayer's bee care initiative raises questions about PR priorities

 Bayer's bee care initiative raises questions about PR priorities

Bayer’s Bee Care Center, launched in 2014 amid growing concerns about bee population decline, is now viewed as a sophisticated public relations move to distract from the role of neonicotinoid pesticides in harming bee health.

Rebecca Raney reports for U.S. Right To Know.

In short:

• Bayer’s Bee Care Center was recognized for its crisis PR strategy rather than its scientific contributions to bee health.
• Critics argue that Bayer used the center to influence future research and divert attention from pesticide issues.
• The center closed in 2019, with no clear explanation from the company.

Key quote:

“It really looks good. They put money into it, and science, and children. The underlying problem wasn’t fixed. But their reputation was fixed.”

— Robin Cohn, a crisis PR specialist and author of The Crisis PR Bible

Why this matters:

The Bayer Bee Care Team and their PR strategy exemplify how corporations sometimes try to thread the needle between science and public relations. Read more: Citing birds and bees, groups petition EPA to close pesticide loophole.