GW is Buzzing with Honey Bees
It’s summertime and The George Washington University Undergraduate Honey Bee Research Laboratory and Apiary team is abuzz as usual. For the past eleven years, we have been supporting (and delighted to learn from) this amazing undergraduate bee research team headed up by Dr. Hartmut Doebel.
The GWU beekeeping research project focuses on different aspects of honey bee life and health, while providing a safe place for our urban pollinators.
For the past 11 years, we have helped support:
- 120 Bee Hives
- 5 Million Honey Bees
- 14 Undergraduate Student Beekeepers maintaining hives
- 46 Undergraduate Students researching bee behavior patterns and colony collapse disorders
- 2,500 lbs of Honey harvested & used in our restaurants and our distillery
Honey bees are essential to the diversity of our food chain. One out of every three mouthfuls of our food depends on pollinators, which also translates to 70 of the world’s top 100 crops being pollinated by honey bees, including potatoes, blueberries & most berries, broccoli, melon, avocados, many nuts, sesame, sunflower, apples, peaches, cucumbers, squash, grapes, tomatoes, and more. Almonds are entirely reliant on bee pollination. In the United States, more than $15 billion dollars worth of crops are pollinated by bees each year.
Did you know these UnBEElievable Honey Bee Facts?
- One bee makes 1/2 teaspoon of honey in its entire life.
- Honey bees NEVER SLEEP.
- Honey bees wings stroke 200 times per second.
- Honey is naturally antibacterial and antimicrobial.
Every year, in early spring, we are invited to participate in the installation of new hives at GW, home of the largest urban apiary in DC. We sometimes visit just to see how the bees are doing, and sometimes we join the annual honey harvest.
We use the delicious GW honey in our restaurants and in our nearby distillery located inside Founding Farmers & Distillers DC, including in the previously released 264 bottles of our special GW Limited Edition Founding Spirits Amaro.
To learn more about the GW Apiary, check out the GWBuzz website.

Celebrate Labor Day Weekend with Brunch at Founding Farmers
Labor Day Weekend marks the unofficial end of summer—and what better way to soak up the last long weekend of the season than with a delicious brunch? All Founding Farmers restaurants will be open for brunch on Saturday, Sunday, and Labor Day Monday, serving up your favorites alongside some of our signature summer flavors.
Celebrate Dad with Our Brunch, Steak Dinner, Drinks & More
Join us Father’s Day weekend to celebrate Dads and all they do. We have so many delicious ways to treat Dad this year. Treat Dad to a Steak Dinner Our steakhouse selections are one of our best kept secrets.
Celebrating World Pride DC 2025? Here’s Where to Eat Close to the Festivities
As the nation’s capital prepares to host World Pride DC 2025, we are thrilled to welcome visitors from across the globe to our vibrant city. We believe there’s no better way to celebrate community and diversity than through the sharing of honest, thoughtfully prepared food & drink.