Explain Pollen Traps?

[GSF]

I would like to have pollen traps explained to me. I see what I think is pollen around the entrance and under the hive but I'm not sure. I read about it being used in patties to feed during the winter, wouldn't it take forever to collect for one patty? What about the possibility of feeding them diseases from the rubbish that's chunked outside the hive?

[10framer]

i used to run them this time of year in the auburn area.  one trap can produce an ounce in a couple of days if you leave the bees a second entrance more if you don't.  we didn't feed pollen, we sold it to a health food store.  in central alabama bees should be bringing in pollen all the way though the end of september.  they will start bringing it in as early as late january/early february.  if you look through your brood chambers you should be seeing almost solid frames of pollen with honey rings toward the outside of the box right now.  if you decide to trap some pollen you can throw it in a zip lock bag and freeze it.  it actually tastes pretty good but it has a grainy texture.

[sc-bee]

Is you question how they work?

How to harvest and process bee pollen for consumption and sale at farmers markets

Bee Pollen Traps,GA Pollen trap beehives,Propolis Honey bees hive,Beekeepers Beekeeping John Pluta

[10framer]

simplest explanation is that the bees pass through a tight entrance and the pollen is knocked from the basket and lands in a collection tray.
we ran metal traps.  you would close the entrance and offset the upper brood box then the bees would pass through the trap to get in.  after a few days we would slide the trap out a little so that new foragers would enter without using it but the workers that had oriented to it still passed through. 
i haven't seen any of those traps advertised in the last several years but i haven't really looked for them.

[sc-bee]

The most popular trap on the market now is a Sundance and they aint cheap. I have one in the shed been there 4 yrs. Just don't know how to prepare the pollen for sale after gathering

framer= how did you prepare the pollen for market and how did you package it for sale. How did you clean? Did you just freeze- how on a cookie sheet? How did you store at market etc. Seems to be hard to find info on preparation of pollen etc.

[GSF]

Thanks yall,

I had done some reading on them and had a vague idea about what they were about. I was surprised to find that it is actually gathered and sold.