As a hobby beekeeper and queen breeder with about 50 hives, I like to have
sugar syrup available during the season without the need to mix it up each
time I need some. The problem is that stored sugar syrup will start
fermenting after a while. Even sooner if it got "contaminated" with honey.

My approach for years is to dump 54 liter (14.3 US gallon) of cold water in
a bottling tank, add 2 bags of granulated sugar of 40 kg (88 Lbs.) each
while stirring  with an electrical agitator. The solution will clear in a
couple of hours, which means the sugar is completely dissolved. This gives
102 liter (27 US gallon) of 60% sugar syrup, 1.5 parts sugar to 1 part
water by weight.

Now I add citric acid, a white powder used in wine making, till a pH of 3.5
has been reached. This has to be done in stages, all the while stirring the
solution. In the past I have tried other substances to prevent fermentation
but with variable success. With citric acid the syrup does not show any
signs of fermentation, even after being stored for 9 months.

The syrup is filled off in 2 liter (0.53 US gallon) pop bottles, so I have
measured quantities of syrup available all season long, which are easy to
handle.

My question is, does anybody know of any adverse effect of citric acid to
the bees? I have not seen any, but that does not mean a whole lot. Plowing
through my literature and the Internet did not give me any answer.


Lambert van der Veen
North shore of Lake Erie
Canada

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