A new “superfood” for honeybees is helping more baby bees grow into adults.
“This technological breakthrough provides all the nutrients bees need to survive, meaning we can continue to feed them even when there’s not enough pollen,” says senior author Professor Geraldine Wright at the University of Oxford.
Scientists developed the superfood in response to a global decline in honeybee numbers, which was attributed to nutrient deficiencies, viral diseases, and climate change. Throughout the trials, scientists observed a 15-fold increase in the number of baby bees that grew into adulthood when their nutrition was supplemented with the superfood. This is particularly important during the summer when flowering plants stop producing early. The superfood itself is designed to mimic nature and give the bees what is best for them, using different proteins, fats, carbohydrates, and micronutrients, and is expected to become available to beekeepers and farmers within two years, should it pass larger-scale trials.
