<>From: "Dave Green, Eastern Pollinator Newsletter" <[log in to unmask]>
<>Date:         Sat, 1 Apr 1995 07:07:02 -0500
<>Subject:      Feeding bees
 
<>    Well, we just had a wreck upstate and we went up and bought a
<>tractor-trailer load of NutraSweet at salvage prices.  We've been really tick
<>ed at the bargain brought about by someone else's misfortune, but then we got
<>to thinking:  Will NutraSweet hurt the bees?  Anybody with any experience, or
<>would like to comment?
 
Hello Dave,
 
I would really want to check with the manufacture on this before I did
anything..
 
  The chemicals involved are dangerous to humans in large doses. I
do not recall seeing any reported deaths but have not check on it. There
is no substance that some sick person has not consumed in gross amounts
to end it all.
 
It is may guess that if you mixed it with sugar syrup you could get the
bees to take it, but I would be bee certain it would do them NO good
at all as it does nothing more then give us the illusion of tasting
sweet when used in very small quantities. The chemical ingredients
themselves are bitter to the taste, and dangerous to ingest, if
you could get them down without tossing your lunch.
 
BTW, if there was any heat involved with the wreck with the chemical
involved you could have some other problems.
 
                                ttul Andy-