Do Bees Eat Their Own Honey?

Yes, honey bees eat the honey they make. Although people enjoy honey as a natural sweetener, bees produce it mainly to feed their colonies.

Honey gives bees the energy they need to fly, work inside the hive, and survive when fresh nectar is hard to find. It becomes especially important during winter, bad weather, and periods when fewer flowers are blooming.

Let's explore why bees make honey, what they do with it, and how their food stores help the colony survive.

Do Bees Eat the Honey They Work So Hard to Make?

Yep, bees eat their own honey, too! They don't make it just for us. Honey is their food supply, helping them stay active and keep the whole colony going.

Why Do Bees Make and Store Honey?

Think of the honeycomb as the hive's pantry. Honey bees collect nectar when flowers are available, turn it into honey, and store it for later.

Fresh nectar gives adult bees carbohydrates for energy, while pollen provides protein, fats, and other nutrients needed by the colony. When nectar becomes harder to find, stored honey gives the bees a reliable source of fuel.

That is especially important during winter.

What Do Bees Do With Their Honey?

Bees use honey as an energy-rich food source and store it for times when fresh nectar isn't available. Honey helps fuel activities such as flying, caring for the hive, and maintaining colony temperature.

Here's how bees use their honey throughout the year.

Unlike humans, bees don't produce honey simply because it tastes sweet. For them, it's an important part of the colony's food supply.

What Do Honey Bees Eat Besides Honey?

Honey isn't the only thing on a bee's menu! Honey bees also rely on nectar and pollen to stay healthy and keep their colony running.

Here's what each food does for them:

• Nectar: This sweet liquid comes from flowers and gives bees the energy they need to fly and work.

• Honey: Bees make honey from nectar and store it for later, especially when fresh food is hard to find.

• Pollen: Pollen provides protein, fats, vitamins, and minerals that help young bees grow and keep the colony healthy.

• Bee bread: Bees mix stored pollen with nectar or honey and other bee-derived substances to make bee bread, which serves as a food source inside the hive.

So, honey alone isn't enough to meet all a bee colony's needs. Pollen is just as important, especially for raising young bees.

The USDA Agricultural Research Service also explains how pollen nutrition helps honeybee colonies grow and thrive throughout the year.

When Do Bees Eat Their Stored Honey?

Honey bees don’t eat honey all the time. Typically, they’ll stick with feeding on nectar and pollen during the warmer months when food is limited.

To bees, honey is more of a long-term storage item or a source of emergency food, only to be used in certain circumstances.

So let’s talk about when bees do eat honey.

During Winter

The coldest months of the year can be hard on the honey bees. Food is scarce in the landscape, with most sources of nectar going dormant or dying in the cold. Plus, there’s the cold weather itself for the bees to contend with.

Did you know honey bees form what’s called a winter cluster? When the temperature drops to around 57 degrees Fahrenheit, all the remaining worker bees gather around the queen bee and vibrate their bodies. This creates a bubble of warmth that keeps the queen and the rest of the colony alive.

• Within the center of a winter cluster, we'll find the queen bee. This area of the cluster is typically kept between 90 to 97 degrees Fahrenheit.

• In a winter cluster, the whole hive works together for one purpose: Staying warm and staying alive.

The worker bees put in a lot of hard work for the hive’s survival in the coldest temperatures, so they need to stay fueled up. This means they begin to consume the honey stored in their honeycombs.

Thankfully, honey is packed with carbohydrates for energy, plus all the nutrients the bees need to make it through winter.

When They’re About to Swarm

The typical honeybee hive houses tens of thousands of bees, and can even surpass 100,000 bees at the peak of the warm season. When the hive gets on the larger side, it can become overcrowded, prompting the bees to prepare to swarm.

• A swarm happens when the queen bee leaves the hive with 40 to 60% of the adult bees and intends on starting a new hive.

• The bees clump together in a ball, often around a tree branch. If you’ve ever seen a swarm of bees, it’s not a sight you’ll soon forget.

That said, swarming doesn’t usually happen all of a sudden, it’s generally planned in advance. Sometimes, the bees will eat from the original hive’s honey stores to fuel their move.

When Nectar Is Scarce

Stored honey also provides backup food when flowers temporarily stop producing enough nectar.

Drought, prolonged bad weather, or seasonal gaps between flowering plants can all reduce the amount of fresh food available. During these periods, the colony can turn to the reserves it prepared earlier.

How Do Bees Make Honey?

Honey production begins when worker bees visit flowers and collect nectar.

The process involves several steps:

1. Collecting nectar: Worker bees visit flowers and suck up nectar, carrying it back to the hive.

2. Changing the nectar: Bees add enzymes that help break down the sugars in the nectar.

3. Storing it: They place the nectar into tiny honeycomb cells.

4. Removing extra water: Bees fan their wings to move air around the hive, helping the nectar lose moisture and become thicker.

5. Sealing the honey: Once the honey is ready, bees cover the cells with a thin layer of beeswax to keep their food safe.

This process transforms flower nectar into the thick, sweet honey stored inside the hive.

If you're curious about the honeycomb itself, explore our guide to eating honeycomb.

Which Bees Eat Honey?

Not every bee species produces and stores honey. Honey bees are the best-known example, although some other bees, such as tropical stingless bees, also produce honey.

There are more than 20,000 kinds of bees in the world, and most do not build the large honey stores associated with honey bee colonies.

Within a honey bee colony:

• Worker bees: Workers use honey as an energy source while carrying out jobs such as foraging, maintaining the hive, caring for brood, and keeping the colony warm.

• Drone bees: Male drones also consume the colony's food stores. Their main role is reproduction, and they are typically present during the warmer breeding season.

What Does the Queen Bee Eat?

The queen is fed a nutrient-rich glandular food, commonly known as royal jelly, by worker bees throughout her life.

Young bee larvae also receive jelly during development, while larvae being raised as queens receive a specialized diet and care as they develop.

Is It Harmful to Take Honey From Bees?

Responsible honey harvesting allows beekeepers to collect honey while leaving enough for the bees to feed their colony. Beekeepers consider the colony’s food needs and make sure the bees have enough honey stored for times when flowers and nectar are scarce. 

Manukora's Approach to Ethical Beekeeping

At Manukora, we recognize that honey is an important food reserve for bees. Our approach, The Art of Ethical Beekeeping™, emphasizes care for the colony and respect for its natural needs.

We leave honey in the hive to help bees through winter rather than removing their entire food supply.

This reflects our commitment to producing New Zealand Manuka honey while respecting the bees responsible for making it.

The Bottom Line

Honey is not just something bees make for us. It is an important food reserve that helps the colony stay fueled when fresh nectar is harder to find.

That is also why thoughtful harvesting matters. The quality and characteristics of honey vary depending on its source and processing. For instance, Manukora's Manuka Honey MGO 600+ and MGO 850+ are premium varieties, each offering unique nutritional profiles due to their high MGO content and rich bioactive compounds.

These can be found amongst other trending products known for their exceptional quality. The color of Manuka honey, a vital attribute, is elaborately discussed in the Manuka Honey Color guide. For those curious about the differences between raw and pure honey, the Raw vs. Pure Honey article offers valuable insights.

Exploring Manukora's collections reveals a diverse range of honey products. Lastly, incorporating these unique honey types into your cooking can be an exciting adventure, and the Cooking with Manuka Honey tips provide great ideas for starting this journey.

Head here to check out the Manukora blog for more articles about bees and all things honey!

FAQs

Do Bees Eat the Honey They Make?

Yes, honey bees eat the honey they make. It gives them energy, especially when flowers are scarce and fresh nectar is harder to find.

Do Bees Eat Honey or Just Make It?

Bees do both. They make honey from flower nectar, store it in honeycomb cells, and eat it when they need food.

Do Bees Need Honey to Survive?

Yes, honey is an important food source for honey bees. They rely on their stored honey when flowers are not available, such as during winter.

Do Bees Prefer Nectar or Honey?

Bees collect nectar when flowers are available and eat stored honey when needed. Both provide the carbohydrates they need for energy.

When do honey bees eat stored honey?

Honey bees rely more heavily on stored honey during winter, poor weather, nectar shortages, and before swarming. These are times when fresh food may be limited or extra energy is needed.

Do all bees eat honey?

No. Most bee species do not produce or store honey. Honey bees are the best-known honey-producing bees, while some stingless bee species also make and consume honey.

Sources

• Stingless bee honey, a novel source of trehalulose: a biologically active disaccharide with health benefits | Scientific Reports

• How many species of native bees are in the United States? | U.S. Geological Survey

• Beekeeping By the Numbers | American Bee Journal

• Winter Clusters Seen with Colors of Heat | American Bee Journal