Bee feeding is the practice of supplying colonies with sugar syrup or fondant when natural forage is insufficient, preventing starvation and maintaining colony strength without introducing feed sugar into marketable honey.
In trade practice
Beekeepers feed colonies in early spring to stimulate brood rearing, after the main harvest to rebuild stores, and before winter to ensure adequate reserves. Sugar syrup or solid fondant is placed in feeders inside or above the hive. Honey intended for sale must be harvested only from nectar stores; feeding must cease well before supers are added to avoid adulteration. Traceability records noting feeding dates and materials support compliance checks by buyers and certification bodies.
In a specification
Purchase specifications for honey typically require a declaration that no feeding occurred during the honey-flow period and that the product derives solely from nectar, confirmed by pollen analysis or stable isotope testing where required.