Skip to content
  • Happy Health
  • Happy Mindset
  • Animal Wonders
  • About Us
    • Team
  • Subscribe
Menu
  • Happy Health
  • Happy Mindset
  • Animal Wonders
  • About Us
    • Team
  • Subscribe
Happy News

This Superfood Contains Everything Bees Need To Survive

Oxford University scientists have engineered yeast to produce a complete superfood containing six vital sterols that honeybees cannot make themselves but desperately need for raising healthy young, addressing the growing crisis of pollen starvation caused by agricultural intensification and climate change. The breakthrough centers on 24 methylenecholesterol, which makes up 60 to 70 percent of all sterols in developing bee pupae and must come directly from pollen, as bees cannot produce this critical compound internally. Traditional pollen substitutes have failed for decades because they contain proteins, sugars, and oils but lack the sterol compounds that enable bee reproduction, causing colonies to weaken and collapse even when other nutrients are available. Researchers genetically modified Yarrowia lipolytica yeast by deleting natural genes and inserting new pathways from plants, algae, and other organisms, creating a strain that produces eight times more sterols per unit weight than natural flower pollen.

Feeding trials demonstrated clear benefits, with colonies maintaining significantly higher numbers of developing pupae throughout a three month test period compared to control groups that showed declining brood production typical of nutritionally starved bees. The technology enables colonies to survive extended periods without natural pollen sources, addressing the unpredictable flowering gaps that climate change increasingly creates and that traditional beekeeping management cannot solve. Commercial production will require scaling up fermentation processes and obtaining regulatory approval, though the heat treated yeast leaves only beneficial sterol compounds with no living cells, mirroring existing practices already approved in aquaculture. Global food security depends heavily on honeybee pollination services worth billions of dollars annually to fruit, vegetable, and nut crops, making this superfood breakthrough a powerful tool for protecting these essential creatures during increasingly challenging environmental conditions.

PrevPreviousThis Paris Company Turns Festival Trash Into Furniture
NextThe Jewelry Made From Century Old Mining PollutionNext

Recent Articles

Happy News

Disneyland Just Got A Whole Lot More Magical

February 24, 2026

If you have been thinking about a trip to Disneyland, right now might be one of the most exciting times in years to walk through those gates. The Happiest Place on Earth is rolling out a wave of fresh additions and fan favorite returns that are giving longtime visitors and

Read More
Happy News

America’s Greatest Skier Did Something Nobody Has Done Before

February 24, 2026

America has a brand new reason to cheer, and her name is Mikaela Shiffrin. The 30-year-old ski superstar delivered one of the most emotionally charged performances in Winter Olympics history, blazing down the slalom course in the stunning Italian Dolomites to claim gold and end an eight-year wait for an

Read More
Happy News

The Proposals At These Olympics Are Breaking The Internet

February 24, 2026

It turns out the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan have been just as exciting off the slopes as on them, because love has been breaking out all over Italy and athletes keep getting down on one knee. At least four proposals have taken place in and around the Games, turning

Read More
« Previous Next »
  • Privacy Notice
  • Accessibility Notice
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
  • Unsubscribe
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
  • Privacy Notice
  • Accessibility Notice
  • Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information
  • Unsubscribe
  • Terms and Conditions
  • Privacy Policy
Copyright © 2026 HappyNews.