Bee bread

Definition

Foragers return with pollen pellets and pack them into cells, where house bees add honey and glandular secretions and press them down. Lactic acid bacteria then ferment the mass, which preserves it, lowers the pH and makes the pollen's nutrients more accessible than raw pollen would be. Bee bread is the colony's protein, lipid and micronutrient supply, and pollen availability rather than nectar is usually what limits brood rearing.

Where the word gets used loosely

Bee bread and bee pollen are sold interchangeably as supplements and are not the same substance — trapped bee pollen is the unfermented raw material. Both are plausible allergens for anyone sensitive to the source plants, and severe reactions are documented, which rarely appears alongside the nutritional claims on the packaging.

Guide records that discuss this

• Bee pollen: the colony's proteinPollen packed into pellets with nectar and enzymes, and the entire protein supply of a colony. Nutritionally real, nutritionally unremarkable at the doses people take, and not a treatment for hay fever.

Question records that discuss this

• What is bee bread?Bee bread is pollen that has been packed into a cell, mixed with nectar and bee secretions, and left to ferment. Lactic acid bacteria acidify it, which preserves it and makes its protein more available — it is the colony's stored protein, and it is not the same thing as the bee pollen sold as a supplement.