Bee Pollen: Granules vs. Powder

How does the measured amount of the powder compare to the granules? I found the capsules of powdered bee pollen and it takes 18 capsules to equal a TBS of the granules (based on the mg amounts on the labels of the two forms)

Since I get it in 20lbs bags I measure it out the same as I did with the granules.

Whether it be granuals or powder I also measure it the same. Since the HPW changed from two table spoons to one table spoon, I figure if they get a little more with the granuals their bodies will just discard the un needed extra amount. But I do wonder if with the powder that they might not be getting enough? Is the one table spoon in the written diet talking about granuals or powder?

jen102375 wrote:

Whether it be granuals or powder I also measure it the same. Since the HPW changed from two table spoons to one table spoon, I figure if they get a little more with the granuals their bodies will just discard the un needed extra amount. But I do wonder if with the powder that they might not be getting enough? Is the one table spoon in the written diet talking about granuals or powder?

This is a good question, and something I am wondering about as well...
Shame no one has had an answer.

I think it would be the opposite. You can fit more powder into a tablespoon than you can granules due to the displacement from the size of the granules.

I'm moving this from the P.G. store thread to keep it on topic.

I weighed a tablespoon of the bee pollen. Don't know if it will help or not. Granules weigh 14g and powder weighs 10g.
The reason I started selling it in powder form was I heard so many people were crushing the granules before putting into the mix. They are crushing then adding and not paying attention to the measurement. I think we need to find out if the original recipe was for powder or granules then adjust accordingly

Hmm.. well, HPW is Peggy's diet, right?
Hopefully she will be along soon.

be careful weighing powders, the amount of pack can affect weight. although as I type this begin realize that a TBSP is not all that big but yeah

Has any one figured out if we need to adjust the bee pollen when in powder form. Right now I am telling my customers to subtract about a 1/8teaspoon when using the powder over the grandules.

Hmmmmm..... but if a T of powder weighs 4g LESS than a T of granules they're already adding less by using the powder.

When you weighed the powder did you pack it in? Maybe if it were packed in it would weigh as much as the granules.

According to the package label on the Bee Pollen granules I purchased 1 TBS is 9 grams

I also have Bee Pollen Caps that contain 500 mg per capusule

9 grams = 9000 mg
18 capsules x 500 mg = 9000 mg

OK experiment time

I opened 18 capsules which were very tightly packed. I collected the powder in a standard Table Spoon. The powder was lumpy from the shape of the capsule so the initial result was a heaping TBS.



I then put the powder in a paper muffin cup and crushed the packed lumps and put the now loose powder back in the tablespoon and packed it tightly - the result was a full packed and leveled tablespoon.



I then used the paper muffin cup on the gram scale (0 with the paper) and weighed the packed TBS of bee pollen - and it equaled 9 gms.



NEXT I measured bee pollen granules as I usually do - scoop with the table spoon and level



Then I weighed the granules and this also weighed 9 gms.



Now if someone will please tightly pack and weigh 1 TBS of the bulk bee pollen powder we can see if it will also weigh 9 gms.


One thing I think is significant is the moisture content which will change the weight without greatly changing the volume. I expect that the powder for both the capsules and the bulk powder is dried before pulverizing to keep it from sticking together and clumping. The bee pollen I use is locally produced wild flower pollen and I think it contains more moisture than the powder in the capsules. That would explain the weights being the same even though the granules have some space between them in the spoon and the powder is tightly packed. We really have no way to adjust for different moisture levels when we weigh either form of bee pollen.

Sugeebaby - did you tightly pack the powder and level it or just scoop it and did you level the table spoon of bee pollen?

sugeebaby wrote:

I weighed a tablespoon of the bee pollen. Don't know if it will help or not. Granules weigh 14g and powder weighs 10g.
The reason I started selling it in powder form was I heard so many people were crushing the granules before putting into the mix. They are crushing then adding and not paying attention to the measurement. I think we need to find out if the original recipe was for powder or granules then adjust accordingly

I sent an e-mail to Peggy today asking if she uses powder or granules for the HPW diet. She replied stating that she has always used granules.

You can't even depend on those weights Candy because the different brands of pollen, pollen exposed to more moisture, the humidity in the air... ALL of those things will make your pollen weigh differently!

When I started using The Blended Diet I had a bottle of bee pollen capsules and asked if someone would weigh a TBSP of pollen granules for me and they said "10 grams", which is equal to the contents of 18 Spring Valley brand Bee Pollenen capsules. Which is awesome as I had also done the mg math and came up with 18 capsules.

I also weighed a tablespoon of Jarrah bee pollen granules from Karen before I ground it up in the Magic Bullet and it weighed 10 grams. After grinding it up, it actually only weighs 8-10 grams according to my scale (So 9-ish?). But it measures in 2 gram increments so I am still using a whole TBSP. When you have the granules, each individual granule is pretty heavy because they are packed tight within themselves. WHen you grind them up, they fluff up and take up what would have been empty space between the individual granules. I think that's why my weights were so close.

I store my powders in the freezer to keep sugar ants away, and keep it fresher. Which I am sure will add moisture, and thus weight, so I will continue to measure by TBSP and not grams.

Yes I agree - moisture and the compact nature of the pollen granules to make a difference in the weight.

Since we are essentially "cooking" for our gliders I think kitchen measurement techniques apply rather than the more "scientific" method of weighing things out to a precise weight.

It appears that a level TBS of granules, 18 of the 500 mg Capsules or a packed level TBS of Powder are all close enough measurements to provide the right amount of bee pollen for our gliders in either the HPW or Blended Diet mixes.

I am going to add these pollen choices and their measurement instructions to the directions for the Blended Diet.

I think we are all on the same page with this so we can respond to future owners who all ask the same question.

Our heads would all be spinning if we tried to weigh out each and every item we use to feed our gliders. Heavens knows wild gliders do not measure anything - they eat what they like when they find it. We all need to learn to stop stressing out over the small stuff when it comes to feeding our gliders.

Candy I did not pack the powder when I measured it. Maybe i should have. so when a customer asks if they should use the same amount of powder as grandules what should I tell them?

I would tell them to use a Packed Level TBS of the powder.

I am sure the bulk powder is very much like the powder in the capsules which are tightly packed. Using the product labels I am confident that the 18 capsules equals 1 TBS granules and when I packed the emptied contents of the 18 capsules into the tablespoon and leveled it - it did equal one level TBS.

The granules are hard and compact so grinding them fluffs the volume - like taking a pillow and shaking it up. The stuffing amount does not increase but the amount of air betweens the fibers does so it will look twice the size.

Thank you SO much for bringing me over here, Candy. I really didn't like giving the pollen in granuals, as i remember reading there may be times granuals can & do show up in fecal floats & smears & could get misdiagnosed as giardia. Powdered forms just mix beter, I think. This was quite a surprise to me when you told me someone else had asked the same thing here as I had on glider gossip. I wonder how many times this happens on different forums.

I agree with Candy. I just re-measured the ground up Jarrah and packed it in real good with my finger and it weighed 10 grams without making my scale blink. If it blinks between the even numbers it means the weight is near the odd number in between. Hope that makes sense. LOL

Thank you everyone. i will make sure my customers know to pack it hard like brown sugar when measuring it out.