Thames & Chiltern Honey Bees – Est. 2018
What started in 2018 with just two small nucleus colonies soon became much more than a hobby. Kris discovered quickly that beekeeping isn’t just about keeping bees – it’s about understanding them. The first lesson was simple: a hive is only as strong as its queen. That belief still drives everything we do today.
Fast forward to now and we manage over a hundred thriving hives across the Thames Valley and Chiltern Hills, breeding calm, productive Buckfast and Carniolan queens that form the backbone of strong, healthy colonies. From those hives comes our range of pure, small-batch honeys – including runny, chunky and cut-comb – all hand-extracted, never blended, never imported.
Every part of the hive has a purpose. The wax from our bees becomes hand-poured candles, natural wax melts, and eco-friendly food wraps. What the bees produce, we use and reuse – nothing goes to waste.
We also raise and sell overwintered and spring nucleus colonies for new and experienced beekeepers, bred for temperament, hygiene and performance. And for anyone curious about what really happens inside a hive, our Beekeeping Experience Days let you step into the suit, lift a frame, and see the world from the bees’ point of view.
Outside the apiary, our sister company BeeGreen Grounds Care looks after green spaces with the same respect for nature – keeping lawns, hedges and verges healthy while protecting pollinators and the wider environment.
At Thames & Chiltern Honey Bees, everything connects: the bees, the land, the products and the people. From hive to jar, from wax to wick – we produce, craft and teach with one goal in mind:
> To keep beekeeping real, sustainable, and local.
It’s widely known that insect pollinators are in decline — but what’s not so well known is just how much we rely on them. Over one third of all the food humans eat depends on pollination. Crops like cherries, raspberries and blackberries are around 90% reliant on honey bees to produce fruit.
Without bees and other pollinators, we’d face less fruit and vegetables, higher food prices, and a huge loss in biodiversity. Quite simply, the balance of nature depends on them.
At Thames & Chiltern Honey Bees, this isn’t just a business — it’s a mission. What started as a hobby has become an obsession: to raise the healthiest, calmest, most productive bees possible, and to share their importance with others.
We do it because the world needs bees.
We do it because our children deserve a future rich in nature, not struggling without it.
🐝 Subscribe below to follow our journey — and be part of protecting Britain’s pollinators.
If you need any help, or have even the smallest question, please do make contact, we are here to help. Don't forget to follow us on Instagram for all the latest updates. @tandc_honey_bees