Hachi-Iku®

Seibu Landscape Co., Ltd. gives people an opportunity to involve deeply with their local greenery through beekeeping under the slogan “Environmental Creation Service Company for People and Greenery.” The beekeeping project “Hachi-Iku®” began at America Yama Park in Yokohama in 2013. As of January 2022, the project is active in seven parks, mainly in Kanagawa Prefecture.

In the Hachi-iku® project, they do not use antibiotics or forcibly collect honey and raise the bees in the natural environment. Hachi-iku®’s honey is raw and multi-floral honey, blossom honey made from floral nectar gathered by bees. Colors and flavors vary from origin, making their honey a unique local product.

At America Yama Park, they do not use pesticides, such as fungicides, insecticides, or herbicides. Additionally, there is little concern about pesticide drift in the area since few farmlands are near the park. Thus, Hachi-iku®’s honey is healthy both for the bees and people.

Approximately 350 kilograms of honey are collected annually from the America Yama Park. In addition to wholesaling to restaurants, cafes, and souvenir shops at hotels in Yokohama, They set up in-person sales days several times a month at the America Yama Park office. Furthermore, taking advantage of its location in Yamate, which has both a residential and tourist area, they produce limited products with the local shopping district and contribute to environmental education at local nursery schools and schools.

1. Encouraging sustainable beekeeping and local produce

Even though companies usually possess a 3 to 5-year management rights of a city park, America Yama Park gives a 10-year management right to Seibu Landscape Co., Ltd.. It allows for long-term involvement in park management. They take good care of bees from a perspective of sustainability and share the correct knowledge about beekeeping with locals.

2. Breeding bees in the natural environment creates a cycle of lives

Besides bees, roses, known as the symbol flower of Yokohama, are cultivated at America Yama Park. Although growing roses without pesticides is generally considered difficult, America Yama Park has been managing the park without pesticides since 2013 to prioritize the health of the bees and residents. With a lot of trial and error, they successfully built a way of maintaining the plants, bees, and people safe and healthy.

3. Being a communication hub

At the America Yama Park office, customers can bring their containers and buy as much honey as they need. In that way, they contribute to reducing food waste and unnecessary containers. Moreover, staff and customers establish conversation while filling honey. They exchange information and discuss environmental concerns. These quick conversations create new connections within the local community.