Colony Collapse Disorder Blamed on Bee Malnutrition

Malnutrition May Have Helped Wipe out 750K Bee Hives
By Alan Fischer, The Tucson Citizen (USA), 1/24/2008

Area researchers believe bee malnutrition contributes to a mysterious phenomenon that wiped out 30 percent of domestic honeybee hives.

"Something like poor nutrition will set up many things," said Gloria Degrandi-Hoffman, director of the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Carl Hayden Bee Research Center in Tucson. "Just like humans, if bees are not eating well they are likely to come down with illnesses and be less resistant to diseases and stresses."

Colony Collapse Disorder, or CCD, saw vast numbers of adult worker bees abandon their hives and die, leaving crops unpollinated…

Tucson researchers developed a diet supplement called MegaBee that is a pollen substitute containing a complete mix of proteins, vitamins and minerals needed for bee colony growth and health, she said…