HOW TO CHOSE A REPUTABLE BRAND OF MANUKA HONEY

As I have mentioned before here in my blog, you have to be very careful buying manuka honey. We all know of the health-giving benefits of this product, but sadly there are, it seems, many disreputable opportunists trying to take advantage of people who chose to buy manuka honey. As reported in both the Guardian and the Times, annual consumption of “manuka honey” in the UK alone exceeds annual production, and this does not allow for the amount that is consumed in New Zealand and the rest of the world.

The first thing to remember is that manuka honey comes from bees that visit the manuka plants and trees that are indigenous to New Zealand. It cannot be produced or collected anywhere else. It is also important to remember that some manuka honey has more active ingredients than other. Hence, there is a classification system known as UMF (Unique Manuka Factor).

Whether buying manuka honey in a supermarket, health food shop, or online, you must always take care. The first thing to look for is the Unique Manuka Honey Factor Association logo:

This means that the brand holds a license with the Unique Manuka Factor Honey Association. It should also have been packaged into jars in New Zealand by a New Zealand company with the licensee’s name on the label. All honey with this accreditation will have a UMF of 5 or over, and the actual strength will be printed on the label.