Häagen-Dazs Is Giving Out Free Ice Cream Today To Help Save The Bees

Yes, many of us are worried about the world's bees being in peril due to climate change. But we're probably not as worried as ice-cream-maker Häagen-Dazs is, since a full third of the company's flavors—like strawberry, mango, and rocky road—depend on bees, due to the little guys' fierce pollination efforts. So, just like last year, H-D's free cone day today has a special mission in mind: to raise awareness about the plight of the bees. Fortune reports that Häagen-Dazs stores will be handing out free cones from 4 to 8 p.m. today to promote increasing public awareness of "colony collapse disorder—which is what happens when the majority of worker bees abandon a colony—and in general to draw attention to the ecological necessity of the oft-maligned little insects."

Turns out Häagen-Dazs has been pushing awareness of the bee plight for about 10 years now, "using our resources and expertise to help save our hardest workers. That's why in 2016, we installed 6-1/2 miles of permanent habitat with a steady food source, creating a year-round habitat for the bees" on the farm of the company's almond supplier in California's Central Valley, according to the "save the bees" page on the Häagen-Dazs website. Look, we'll take our free ice cream any way we can get it, especially for a good cause, and if we have to watch a bee video or pick up a pamphlet or whatever, so be it. Or maybe we'll try the ice cream flavor Häagen-Dazs has donated to their fuzzy, stingy little friends: Honey Salted Caramel Almond.