We like to keep our sourcing local…. and that’s exactly what Dorinde does!

De Tempe has twenty beehives in nine different locations throughout the city, with a base at the community gardens in Westerpark. “I started with one hive for myself during my beekeeping training, and within a year, I had four.” Then, the beekeeper received a request from De Brakke Grond to place a few hives on their rooftop and take care of them. This grew into a small beekeeping business that De Tempe combines with her job at the Concertgebouworkest. “It’s not a lucrative business, but it’s my passion.”

De Tempe receives compensation for renting out bee colonies, but she emphasizes that her love for nature comes first. “The bees have taught me to look at the city differently. Which trees and plants are nearby that they can feed on? And I learn something new every day.” The beekeeper doesn’t accept every request. “A restaurant once asked me to place ten hives there. That’s ridiculous. I also only work with regular honey bees, not with the super bees that are used nowadays to produce as much honey as possible.”