When you’re trying to strengthen your hives and increase brood production, it’s vital to purchase the best bee pollen substitute. Searching through the many products available can become confusing. This is why I’ve done the research and am going to bring you the top products for bee pollen substitutes.
What is the best bee pollen substitute? In my opinion, the best bee pollen substitute is Mann Lake Ultra Bee Dry Feed. This product contains 65% protein and is known for increasing brood production. It also contains a variety of minerals, lipids, and vitamins vital for your bees’ health and productivity.
Knowing which bee pollen substitute to use is only half the equation. It’s equally as important to know when to use it, how to use it, and why you should use bee pollen substitute when raising bees. I’m going to fill you in on these important aspects.
Last update on 2023-03-25 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
Reviews of the Best Bee Pollen Substitutes
1. Mann Lake Ultra Bee Dry Feed
When beekeepers search for the best bee pollen substitute to use in their hive, most desire a product that’s easy to feed and contains quality ingredients.
Mann Lake Ultra Bee Dry Feed contains 65% protein. It also includes a variety of vitamins, minerals, and lipids. All these ingredients are important when trying to increase the brood productivity in a hive.
There are no soy or animal by-products included in this bee pollen substitute, which is good if you’re concerned about the quality of ingredients you feed your bees. Because this product is a dry feed, it can be fed to the bees in a feeder box or made into pollen patties.
Having this option to dry feed or make pollen patties is a great benefit because some beekeepers prefer one over the other. If you purchase this product and find you or your hive have a preference in how the pollen substitute is consumed, this product is versatile enough to meet those preferences.
The bee pollen substitute comes in a variety of sizes. You can increase or decrease the size based upon the number of hives you keep and your budget. The shelf-life of the product is thought to be approximately a year and a half, which is helpful if you wish to purchase larger quantities at one time.
Some people use this product in their swarm boxes as well, to attract bees. If you’re interested in increasing your numbers through brood productivity and catching swarms, this product may be able to help you.
Pros:
- Quality ingredients
- Easy to feed to bees
- Available in a variety of sizes
Cons:
- There’s risk your bees won’t accept pollen substitute
- May attract other insects if turned into patties
- Does contain grain by-products
2. Mann Lake Bee Pro Patties with Pro Health
If you’re a beekeeper that only likes to use patties to feed your bees pollen, this product could help you streamline the process.
You can make your own pollen patties to feed your bees. They’re beneficial because you can add a variety of ingredients to the patties to help boost your bees’ health.
However, making pollen patties takes extra work and time that many beekeepers may not have. Making your own pollen patties can prove to be messy too.
By purchasing pre-made patties, you can avoid many of these downfalls. This is where Mann Lake Bee Pro Patties with Pro Health come into play.
The patties are shipped straight to your door ready to go into the hive. You can also purchase a variety of sizes to make sure you keep pollen patties on hand whenever you need them.
Each patty weighs approximately one pound. You can purchase a package starting at ten pounds, and it increases from there.
If you prefer to stick with all-natural ingredients, you may have a hard time with this product because it’s said that the patties are made with high-fructose corn syrup.
This is a divided matter amongst beekeepers, so your preference on the matter will determine whether this is the product for you.
Pros:
- Streamlines the feeding process
- Offered in a variety of sizes
- Saves beekeepers valuable time
Cons:
- Thought to contain high-fructose corn syrup
- There’s a risk the bees won’t partake in this pollen substitute
- Packaging has been known to allow ants and other insects to penetrate the product before delivery
3. Mann Lake Bee-Pro Pollen Substitute
When choosing a pollen substitute, it’s important to make sure you purchase a product that contains a variety of ingredients. This is important because the bees need different types of proteins and minerals to perform at their optimal level.
Mann Lake Bee-Pro Pollen Substitute contains a variety of amino acids. This builds different types of proteins that will help your bees increase their brood production.
This pollen substitute contains a variety of minerals, lipids, and B-vitamins, which help the nurse bees make more food for the larvae they hope to care for in the near future.
As important as it is to know what this product contains, it’s equally important to note what isn’t there. This product contains no actual pollen. The reason the manufacturer didn’t include this in the pollen substitute is that some pollen will have been contaminated with pesticides or disease.
By choosing to bypass natural pollen in the product, they can better ensure your bees will only ingest quality ingredients that will help the hive become stronger.
This product also comes in a variety of sizes, making it a manageable choice for both the hobby beekeeper and the commercial beekeeper.
Pros:
- Offered in a variety of sizes
- Contains quality ingredients
- Manufacturer is careful not to include ingredients that could contain contaminants such as natural pollen
Cons:
- There’s a risk the bees won’t use it
- May attract other insects
- Package instructions to make pollen patties aren’t specific for smaller batches, which would be vital if you purchase smaller containers of the product
Why Use Bee Pollen Substitute
Most beekeepers don’t realize how in-depth of a hobby beekeeping can become. Bees are amazing creatures that have a unique system to survive.
One of the first things you’ll notice as a beekeeper is how important brood is to a hive. When your bees are climbing out of their hive after a long winter, they may need more time or an increase in protein to begin boosting their brood productivity.
This is where bee pollen substitute comes in. By feeding the bees a high-quality pollen substitute, it allows the nurse bees to make more food for the larvae.
The nurse bees will prepare the cells for the larvae, and the queen will come behind and lay eggs in the cells.
Instead of allowing your bees to struggle through the end of the cold season, a protein boost can help them climb over the proverbial hump and continue to thrive into the warmer seasons.
When and How to Use Bee Pollen Substitute
When choosing the best bee pollen substitute, it’s important to understand how to use the product effectively. Many beekeepers get pollen confused with sugar when maintaining their hives.
They assume that when they feed their bees sugar syrup that they should feed pollen as well. As we discussed in the last section, pollen is used mainly as a brood enhancer.
You don’t want to feed your hive pollen at the early on-set of winter. This will only mean more bees your hive will have to sustain over the winter months.
However, if you wait until the end of winter or early spring to provide pollen, this could be the boost they need to kick the hive into high gear.
Once you figure out when you should provide pollen for your bees, it’s also important to discuss how to feed it to them.
Many beekeepers prefer to use a feeder box. Place it on the top of the hive and fill it with the dry granules of pollen substitute.
If you don’t have a top feeder or this isn’t your preference, consider making pollen patties. It’s a mixture of pollen and honey. Together, these ingredients form a dough that can be placed just under the top of the hive.
The bees will climb inside the hive and up to the top to snack on the patties. This will give them all the energy they need to begin boosting their brood production.
It’s a good idea to place the pollen patties between two sheets of wax paper prior to placing them in the hive. You can slice the paper in a few spots to give the bees access.
Wax paper is better than other forms of paper because it requires less clean-up for the bees once the pollen patties are eaten.
Though pollen patties may seem like more work than a feeder box, it’s a great way to feed your bees other ingredients they may need at the same time you’re introducing pollen. Pollen patties can allow you to include essential oils that are good for bees or Honey B Healthy into their diets.
These added nutrients can strengthen hives, calm them, and give them the necessary boost they need over winter and during times of scarcity. Feeding pollen to your hives at the right time can do a great deal to increase their quantity and quality.
My Choice for the Best Bee Pollen Substitute
Beekeepers want to see their hives productive during most seasons of the year. You can wait for your bees to jumpstart their own systems, or you can provide them with some extra help by feeding them a pollen substitute.
If you are looking to introduce the best bee pollen substitute to their diets, I recommend going with Mann Lake Ultra Bee Dry Feed.
This product is 65% protein and includes a variety of amino acids to give your bees the diversity they need to boost their brood production.
It includes minerals, lipids, and other vitamins necessary for brood production as well. These ingredients also help maintain the overall health of your bees.
The pollen substitute allows you to feed your bees in a feeder box or make pollen patties based upon your hive’s preference and your preferences as the beekeeper.
Top Rated Bee Pollen Substitute
Last update on 2023-02-25 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
