Sarasota beekeeper upcycling political signs for sweet purpose
SARASOTA, Fla. - They're the byproduct of a long and divisive election year. Now, political yard signs will serve a sweeter purpose and it's causing quite a buzz.
"I saw the politician signs and I said, 'What a great opportunity,'" said Alma Johnson, who owns Sarasota Honey Company. "I'd rather use those than having to go buy corrugated plastic from Home Depot and add more to the landfill too."
Johnson is now using political signs to keep her bees safe from the elements and predators, like beetles.
"They don’t care if it’s a Trump sign or a Biden sign. They hold no loyalty to any party," she said.
Sarasota Honey Co. is asking for plastic political signs. The foam ones don't do them any good. It's spaces in the plastic signs that can help out the bees.
"We cut these political signs into squares. We seal one side and fill it with mineral oil and apple cider vinegar and it draws the beetles into the holes and they can’t get out because of the slipperiness of the oil and they die. It’s a natural way to treat the beehives and we don’t have to use chemicals," Johnson explained.
On top of that, the signs can be used to keep bees warm when the temperature drops below 60 degrees.
"They won’t take off because a particular sign is underneath them, they don’t care. They just want to stay nice and warm just as you like to stay nice and cozy without any bugs in your house," she said.
Nancy Regan, no relationship to our 40th president, made a stop to drop off signs she found.
"It was an environmental way to take care of somebody else’s trash," said Regan.
All party signs. Left, right, and in-between will be used for the greater good.
"It is a way of bringing people together and guess what, the byproduct of that coming together is a sweet life, honey," said Johnson.
Sarasota Honey Co. is located at 2227 University Pkwy in Sarasota. They ask that you bundle yard signs and drop them off during business hours. Call (941) 726-8755 for more information.
LINK: Click here to see how the signs are being repurposed.
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