York pollination experts make an international splash in biodiversity with innocent drinks partnership

York-based pollination and biodiversity specialists AgriSound have partnered with innocent drinks to install insect listening devices in Spanish orchards to tackle declining insect populations.

AgriSound has researched and developed a series of agri-tech devices, which use a combination of acoustic technology and environmental sensors to monitor bee and other pollinator populations, remotely, through an app. The pollinator counting devices (PollyTM) can be used by farmers and landowners to monitor and protect biodiversity.

The devices count the number of insects that visit a site and are able to identify which areas have higher and lower pollinator activity, both live and historically. This information is used to target the introduction of pollinator-protection measures to the areas of greatest need, such as planting wildflowers or creating new habitats.

AgriSound is a partner of innocent’s Beacon Project, which aims to protect pollinators in order to build biodiversity, improve farmers’ crop yields and reduce carbon emissions in innocent’s supply chain.

AgriSound will implement 48 PollyTM devices across several orchards in Spain. Devices will monitor pollinator levels over a three-year period, in which performance of the devices will be monitored and the impact on crop yield and carbon emissions measured, allowing innocent to work to improve biodiversity and yields.

Ben Summers, sustainability manager at innocent drinks, said: “86% of our ingredients rely on pollinators like bees and butterflies, but their numbers are falling worryingly fast, so being able to understand how to create the best environment for pollinators across our fields and orchards is hugely important.

“As we share what we learn, we hope the technology can become a time saving tool for other farms too.”

Dr Casey Woodward, founder and CEO of AgriSound, said: “To work with a company like innocent, who share our enthusiasm for boosting biodiversity and protecting our natural environment, is fantastic and we’re confident that our monitoring technology can have a tangible positive impact.

“To be able to install devices on such a large scale internationally will allow both parties to gain a vital understanding of pollinators in the area and allow us to put things in place to help them thrive, while boosting yield at the same time.