Bee Pollen – Health Benefits & How to Harvest

Beekeepers can collect fresh pollen for both human consumption and for feeding back to bees. In this article we look at the health benefits of pollen and how to harvest, process and store bee pollen.

Consuming Bee Pollen

There is a growing market for pollen products for human consumption as a health food and performance booster. Both as bee bread (fermented pollen) and fresh or dried pollen. Bee pollen is highly nutritious. It not only contains many of the nutrients needed by the human body, there are also many health benefits reported as deriving from the consumption of bee pollen. Many of them are similar to those for bee bread:

People consume pollen and bee bread for a number of different reasons. As with many other honeybee derivatives, pollen and bee bread has been consumed since ancient times. It is thought to have many health benefits. For example antibiotic and antioxidant properties as well as boosting the immune system and fighting off disease. Whereas we are still waiting for much of this to be proven scientifically, the anecdotal evidence is pointing towards the many health benefits of eating bee bread for reasons other than its nutritional value.

Very many people also take pollen as a prophylactic treatment for hay fever. It is thought that by ingesting pollen regularly, either on its own or in honey, the body gets used to dealing with pollen and is better prepared to deal with pollen in the air during the spring or summer. Again, there is little scientific evidence to prove or disprove this, but the anecdotal evidence is vast.

How to take Bee Pollen

Most recommendations will advise to start with a few pellets of pollen or bee bread a day and increase the amount to one or a couple of tablespoons per day for maximum effect. (People allergic to honeybee products should not take pollen. Possible side effects include allergic reaction, phototoxic reaction, renal failure, and reaction with other medications.)

Pollen traps

Pollen is collected using a pollen trap, which is a piece of equipment attached to the entrance of the hive. When foragers return to the hive after collecting pollen, they will walk through small openings. These openings are just big enough for the bee to get through, but strips the pollen from its legs. The pollen falls into a tray below and can then be removed and processed. When the day’s pollen collecting is done, slide out or lift the grille. This completely opens the entrance and allow unimpeded access for foragers and drones.

There are many different designs available on the market, but in essence they all work the same. The best ones are those where you can leave an unrestricted opening to the side allowing for drones to get in and out. (They do not fit into the small holes.) This also allows for foraging bees with pollen returning to that side of the entrance ensuring that some pollen keeps coming into the hive.

Collect responsibly

It is important to collect pollen responsibly. So be mindful of the long-term effects that pollen stress can have on honeybee colonies. Hence, pollen should be collected for only a couple of hours each day, and/or on alternate days. Collect pollen when you are certain that the colony has reasonable pollen stores and there is an abundance of available pollen. Do not collect during times of pollen scarcity either within the hive or in the available forage. Collecting pollen can be very interesting. It enables you to get a closer understanding of which flowers your bees visit for pollen. If you are investing in a pollen trap, I would advise that you also get a pollen identification chart. It will aid you in deciphering what plants your bees are foraging on using the colour of the pollen and the time of year as indicators.

Processing and storing bee pollen

Fresh pollen will spoil quickly and should be cleaned or picked over immediately after harvesting and subsequently frozen. Frozen fresh pollen is as close to fresh pollen as you will get. So if you are gathering pollen for personal consumption, it is best to keep in the freezer. Take out as needed and consume. Allow to defrost for 10-15 minutes before eating. Fresh pollen can be stored in the fridge for a few days and up to about two weeks. But it is best not to store fresh pollen for any length of time if avoidable. This is because the moisture in fresh pollen will encourage the growth of mould. Pollen for resale or for non-freezer storage should be dried.

The process of drying fresh pollen is as follows:

• Clean or pick over the freshly harvested pollen.
• Freeze for 1-2 days. Do not allow the pollen to form a clump in the container. Break up or shake if needed so that the pellets are frozen individually.
• Dry pollen at 35-40 degrees Celsius. A food dehydrator is best, but the oven on low heat, fan on and with oven door ajar will work well also. Spread out on a sheer cloth to allow air to reach all sides and dry the pollen until fully dry.
• If you want to clean the pollen further, you can set up a fan blowing at low speed and using two bowls. Pour the pollen from one into the other in front of the fan to remove pollen dust and chaff. Make sure to test first to ensure the fan is not too strong. If it is, you may end up with your precious pollen all over the place.
• Store in airtight containers in a dry and dark place, either cool or at room temperature. Stored like this, it will keep for a year or more.    

Feeding pollen or pollen substitute to bees

If you are collecting pollen to feed back to the bees, you can process it as above. Then mix with syrup to make pollen patties. Commercially, pollen patties are usually made with a protein rich pollen substitute. Care needs to be taken when feeding pollen or pollen substitute to bees.

Pollen and/or pollen substitute are given to bees in order to encourage them to rear brood. The bees will recognise the increased availability of pollen and increase the rate of their brood rearing. The queen will lay more eggs and those eggs will turn into larva. The larva will need to be fed brood food by nursebees. These nursebees need to consume a lot of pollen in order to be able to produce the brood food. If feeding pollen or pollen substitute it is important to make sure that the bees are ready for it and that the timing is right.

Seasonal considerations

If feeding of pollen or pollen substitute is started too early, let us say late autumn or mid-winter, the extra bees created as a result of unseasonal brood rearing will often be superfluous to the requirements of the colony. They will turn into nurse bees at a time when not much brood is reared. They will need to consume a lot of pollen and honey or nectar. Moreover, they will have to leave the hive, and the cluster if one is formed, to defecate, during a time when the weather may not be suitable for them to do so. Pollen or pollen substitute should therefore be fed when it is desirable for the bees to start rearing brood. It can also be given to give them a boost when the availability of pollen is insufficient.

Hanna Bäckmo

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