It is estimated that only 1,700 tons Mānuka honey are produced in New Zealand each year. However, about 10,000 tons are sold worldwide as “Mānuka honey”.. are you really getting what you paid for?
With all the hype around Mānuka honey, counterfeit honeys also came onto the market. A recent study(1) by the EU Commission revealed that there are a lot of fake Mānuka honeys. Mānuka Health, the premium market leader for Mānuka honey in Europe, is tackling the problem with complete traceability, authenticity, and controlled quality, so that customers really get what is being communicated on the packaging.
Bergkamen, May 2023 – This is nothing new to the indigenous people of New Zealand, the Māori, who have been swearing by the beneficial properties of the Mānuka plant for centuries. In Europe, the extraordinary honey, which is extracted by bees from the nectar of the New Zealand Mānuka tree, has become a real food trend in recent years. Demand for this rare natural product keeps rising - and so is the price. Truth be told, Mānuka honey is rare and expensive for two good reasons: it can only be harvested during a short period of the year and the Mānuka bushes grow in often remote and hard to access areas of New Zealand. It is therefore no surprise that fraudsters also want their share of this profitable pie. Label fraud is flourishing. The description used on packaging does not always guarantee that genuine Mānuka honey is being offered. In fact, it is estimated that only 1,700 tons Mānuka honey are produced in New Zealand each year. However, about 10,000 tons are sold worldwide as “Mānuka honey” when what goes into the jar may not actually be the real thing. Alarmed by the situation, the EU Commission published a report on honey counterfeiting in March last year. The outcome of the report is disturbing, to say the least: cheap sugar syrup was detected in 46% of 320 honey samples. A counterfeit rate of almost 1 in 2 honeys is thus about three times as high as in the last EU inspection report from the investigation period running from 2015 to 2017. At that time, the proportion of counterfeited samples was only 14 percent. Whilst aware of this alarming trend, the European market leader Mānuka Health can say with a clear conscience that it is not affected.
Full transparency.
Mānuka Health can prove that the honey is bottled in New Zealand and that there are no further intermediate steps before the product reaches the customer. The company also holds the FERNMARK license. This certificate of authenticity is issued by the New Zealand Ministry of Agriculture and confirms that the products are produced in New Zealand and certified there. Mānuka Health is fully integrated and as such manages its own beekeepers, hives, extraction centers, production and bottling plants as well as seamless direct transport to its own subsidiary in Europe - this is not only unique in the industry and guarantees the best quality, but also a real proof of "Made in New Zealand".
More than just trust: controlled quality.
The Mānuka honeys from premium supplier Mānuka Health regularly undergo strict controls to continuously guarantee the highest product quality. Coupled with scientific expertise in researching the natural ingredient methylglyoxal, this has turned Mānuka Health into ”the MGO pioneer” and the best-known and most popular brand in Europe. Mānuka Health was the first bottler to implement the identification of the magic ingredient by the research team led by Professor Thomas Henle at the Technical University of Dresden. Since then, every batch is tested and MGO™ certified using the method he developed. For New Zealand's honey producers, this was a groundbreaking development that, after only a few years, led to the measurement of the MGO concentration now being the recognized, most important quality criterion for Mānuka honeys. Natural products like honey differ from harvest to harvest. They come from many bee colonies, different beekeeping operations and locations. Therefore, checking the purity and quality of premium honeys plays a significant role. Tests and checks of each batch for e.g. contamination, toxin contamination, adulteration or heat damage ensure reliable quality. For the supplier and exporter Mānuka Health, it is of prime importance of course that its honeys are also tested for conformity with the German Honey Ordinance. It includes a substantial number of honey-specific inspection criteria and is considered the strictest quality inspection in the world. Only those MGO™ Mānuka honeys that comply with it make the sea journey to Europe to the importer Neuseelandhaus.
Authenticity for the future - sustainable beekeeping.
In New Zealand, wild Mānuka trees grow in pristine, often inaccessible areas. Local beekeepers know the best spots densely covered with Mānuka. They set up their hives there during the flowering season from November to February, often on specially leased land. But even here in seclusion, supply of nectar can easily be compromised if too many bees must share the harvest. That is why at the beginning of the harvest season, Mānuka Health head beekeeper Dave Campbell focuses on the optimal distribution of the hives. For him, sustainability, and bee health take precedence over short term honey yields, because both bees and humans benefit from this. The experienced beekeeper attaches importance to keeping bees as gently as possible, focusing on the nutrition and health of the hive and special overwintering measures. In addition, Mānuka Health does not use antibiotics. There are two sides to the fact that Mānuka honey has become popular with so many celebrities and, as a result, around the world. The growing demand not only increases the value and thus the prices of the New Zealand natural product, but also brings imitators or counterfeiters onto the scene. This makes trust in the reliable quality of a brand even more important. With absolute transparency, Mānuka Health is happy to reveal its authenticity. Mānuka Health products are available in health stores and pharmacies.
Dave Campbell, Manuka Health Head Beekeeper
About Mānuka Health:
Mānuka Health was founded in 2006 in the small rural community of Te Awamutu in Aotearoa, New Zealand. Today, its products are distributed in more than 40 countries around the world and Mānuka Health is the leading supplier of Mānuka honey products. The well-being of consumers is the top priority in the selection and production of the products. The product range extends from honey and cough drops to skin and oral care.
(1) Since 2021, the EU has regularly checked the origin of imported honey. “From The Hives" aims to prevent counterfeiting, protect consumers and ensure brand protection. The current report covering the period 2021 and 2022 was published in March this year and is available at the following link: https://food.ec.europa.eu/safety/eu-agri-food-fraud-network/eu-coordinated-actions/honey-2021-2022_en