Scientists have created a groundbreaking bee “superfood” by engineering yeast to produce six essential sterols normally found in pollen.
Colonies given this lab-made diet reared up to 15 times more young than those on standard feeds, thriving with a nutrient profile almost identical to naturally foraged diets. The breakthrough offers a sustainable way to restore bee health at a time when pollinator populations are collapsing, threatening food security worldwide.
Breakthrough Bee Superfood Could Halt Colony Declines
A team of researchers led by the University of Oxford, working with Royal Botanic Gardens Kew, the University of Greenwich, and the Technical University of Denmark, has developed a promising approach to address the alarming decline of honeybees. Their work centers on a specially engineered dietary supplement that replicates vital compounds normally obtained from plant pollen. When tested, this supplement was shown to dramatically boost colony reproduction. The findings were released on August 20 in the journal Nature.
Climate Change, Farming, and Bee Nutrition Crisis
Honeybees are struggling in part because climate change and modern farming practices have reduced the variety of flowers they rely on. Pollen makes up the bulk of a bee’s diet and contains lipids known as sterols that are essential for healthy growth and development. With natural pollen supplies increasingly scarce, beekeepers have turned to artificial substitutes. These products, typically made from protein flour, sugars, and oils, provide calories but do not contain the sterols bees require, leaving them nutritionally deficient.
In this study, the scientists genetically modified the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica so it could generate a precise blend of six sterols critical to bee health. They then incorporated the yeast into experimental diets and tested them in controlled feeding trials lasting three months. The colonies were housed in enclosed glasshouses to ensure the bees consumed only the specially formulated diets.
Key Findings:
- By the end of the study period, colonies fed with the sterol-enriched yeast had reared up to 15 times more larvae to the viable pupal stage, compared with colonies fed control diets.
- Colonies fed with the enriched diet were more likely to continue rearing brood up to the end of the three-month period, whereas colonies on sterol-deficient diets ceased brood production after 90 days.
- Notably, the sterol profile of larvae in colonies fed the engineered yeast matched that found in naturally foraged colonies, suggesting that bees selectively transfer only the most biologically important sterols to their young.
Synthetic Biology Unlocks Nutritional Solutions
Senior author Professor Geraldine Wright (Department of Biology, University of Oxford), said: “Our study demonstrates how we can harness synthetic biology to solve real-world ecological challenges. Most of the pollen sterols used by bees are not available naturally in quantities that could be harvested on a commercial scale, making it otherwise impossible to create a nutritionally complete feed that is a substitute for pollen.”
Lead author Dr. Elynor Moore (Department of Biology, University of Oxford at the time of the study, now Delft University of Technology) added: “For bees, the difference between the sterol-enriched diet and conventional bee feeds would be comparable to the difference for humans between eating balanced, nutritionally complete meals and eating meals missing essential nutrients like essential fatty acids. Using precision fermentation, we are now able to provide bees with a tailor-made feed that is nutritionally complete at the molecular level.”
Identifying the Critical Nutrients in Pollen
Before this work, it was unclear which of the diverse sterols in pollen were critical for bee health. To answer this, the researchers chemically assessed the sterol composition of tissue samples harvested from pupae and adult bees. This required some extraordinarily delicate work; for instance, dissecting individual nurse bees to separate the guts. The analysis identified six sterol compounds that consistently made up the majority in bee tissues: 24-methylenecholesterol, campesterol, isofucosterol, β-sitosterol, cholesterol, and desmosterol.
Using CRISPR-Cas9 gene editing, the researchers then engineered the yeast Yarrowia lipolytica to produce these sterols in a sustainable and affordable way. Y. lipolytica was selected since this yeast has a high lipid content, has been demonstrated as food-safe, and is already used to supplement aquaculture feeds. To produce the sterol-enriched supplement, engineered yeast biomass was cultured in bioreactors, harvested, then dried into a powder.
Co-author Professor Irina Borodina (The NNF Center for Biosustainability, Technical University of Denmark) said: “We chose oleaginous yeast Yarrowia lipolytica as the cell factory because it is excellent at making compounds derived from acetyl-CoA, such as lipids and sterols, and because this yeast is safe and easy to scale up. It is used industrially to produce enzymes, omega-3 fatty acids, steviol glycosides as calorie-free sweeteners, pheromones for pest control, and other products.”
Protecting Crops, Biodiversity, and Wild Bees
Pollinators like honeybees contribute to the production of over 70% of leading global crops. Severe declines – caused by a combination of nutrient deficiencies, climate change, mite infestations, viral diseases, and pesticide exposure – poses a significant threat to food security and biodiversity. For instance, over the past decade, annual commercial honey bee colony losses in the U.S have typically ranged between 40 and 50%, and could reach 60 to 70% in 2025. This new engineered supplement offers a practical means to enhance colony resilience without further depleting natural floral resources. Since the yeast biomass also contains beneficial proteins and lipids, it could potentially be expanded into a comprehensive bee feed.
Co-author Professor Phil Stevenson (RBG Kew and Natural Resources Institute, University of Greenwich) added: “Honey bees are critically important pollinators for the production of crops such as almonds, apples, and cherries, and so are present in some crop locations in very large numbers, which can put pressure on limited wildflowers. Our engineered supplement could therefore benefit wild bee species by reducing competition for limited pollen supplies.”
A Game-Changer for Farmers and Food Security
Danielle Downey (Executive Director of honeybee research nonprofit Project Apis m., not affiliated with the study) said: “We rely on honey bees to pollinate one in three bites of our food, yet bees face many stressors. Good nutrition is one way to improve their resilience to these threats, and in landscapes with dwindling natural forage for bees, a more complete diet supplement could be a game-changer. This breakthrough discovery of key phytonutrients that, when included in feed supplements, allow sustained honey bee brood rearing has immense potential to improve outcomes for colony survival, and in turn the beekeeping businesses we rely on for our food production.”
Next Steps: Field Trials and Wider Applications
Whilst these initial results are promising, further large-scale field trials are needed to assess long-term impacts on colony health and pollination efficacy. Potentially, the supplement could be available to farmers within two years.
This new technology could also be used to develop dietary supplements for other pollinators or farmed insects, opening new avenues for sustainable agriculture.
Reference: “Engineered yeast provides rare but essential pollen sterols for honeybees” by Elynor Moore, Raquel T. de Sousa, Stella Felsinger, Jonathan A. Arnesen, Jane D. Dyekjær, Dudley I. Farman, Rui F. S. Gonçalves, Philip C. Stevenson, Irina Borodina and Geraldine A. Wright, 20 August 2025, Nature.
DOI: 10.1038/s41586-025-09431-y
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