BASF unveils pollinator garden at McIntosh site to help increase monarch butterfly population

McIntosh Elementary students participate in inaugural Kids’ Lab program to gain firsthand experience and increase monarch butterfly population

MCINTOSH, AL, May 18, 2018 -- Fourth grade students from McIntosh Elementary School attended the unveiling of the newly installed pollinator garden and outdoor classroom at BASF. The 40 students helped BASF celebrate the unveiling by releasing monarch butterflies in the pollinator garden and participated in an instructor-led Kids’ Lab workshop that explored chemistry through safe and engaging experiments, coupled with interactive demonstrations.

“Through BASF’s pollinator garden and Kids’ Lab program we hope to further educate and empower the future leaders of our community, said Jason Slinkard, Site Director for BASF in McIntosh. “Helping to ensure a healthy monarch butterfly population is also part of BASF’s commitment to sustainability and being responsible environmental stewards.

The pollinator garden stems from the biodiversity research initiative that BASF launched two years ago called Living Acres. While populations of the monarch butterflies have plummeted by approximately 90 percent in the last 20 years and continue to decline, this initiative is pushing forward to provide information to farmers about planting milkweed in non-crop areas in an economical and practical manner with the goal of increasing the monarch population.

Through the collaboration with Scotts Miracle-Gro, 200 bags of garden soil and 24 jugs of plant food were provided to nurture the many plants growing in the pollinator garden. Through its’ Pollinator Promise program, Scotts has helped over 100 communities and counting establish or expand a pollinator garden.

For more information about BASF’s Living Acres and helping monarch butterflies, visit http://www.basf.us and www.basf.us/alabama.

For a press photo, please click on the following links:
https://www.basf.com/press-photos/us/en/photos/2018/05/05-18-18_PollinatorGarden1.jpg
Suggested caption: Forty fourth graders participate in BASF’s flowers love pollination Kids’ Lab and pollinator garden unveiling ceremony.

https://www.basf.com/press-photos/us/en/photos/2018/05/05-18-18_PollinatorGarden2.jpg
Suggested caption: BASF employees at the McIntosh, Alabama facility recently unveiled a pollinator garden and outdoor classroom to complement the company’s Living Acres initiative to help increase the monarch butterfly population.

About BASF

BASF Corporation, headquartered in Florham Park, New Jersey, is the North American affiliate of BASF SE, Ludwigshafen, Germany. BASF has more than 18,200 employees in North America, and had sales of $17.9 billion in 2017. For more information about BASF’s North American operations, visit www.basf.com.

At BASF, we create chemistry for a sustainable future. We combine economic success with environmental protection and social responsibility. The more than 115,000 employees in the BASF Group work on contributing to the success of our customers in nearly all sectors and almost every country in the world. Our portfolio is organized into five segments: Chemicals, Performance Products, Functional Materials & Solutions, Agricultural Solutions and Oil & Gas. BASF generated sales of €64.5 billion in 2017. BASF shares are traded on the stock exchanges in Frankfurt (BAS), London (BFA) and Zurich (BAS). Further information at www.basf.com.

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