brought to you by Manuka Doctor
Choosing the best Manuka honey can be a minefield.
In this blog, we simplify a lot of the facts and science in order to give you a quick and easy guide to buying quality and genuine Manuka honey.
These points are all covered in more depth here on our website, but for speed here are the five main points you need to know about Manuka honey and selecting a good brand.
- Manuka Honey can only come from New Zealand.
That’s because New Zealand is the only country in the world to have formalised the scientific definition of what Manuka honey is.
This strict scientific standard is also called the MPI Standard and is stamped onto the lid of every jar of Manuka Doctor honey.
Australian Manuka honey does exist, but it doesn’t meet the same strict scientific standard set by New Zealand and many countries or retailers do not accept it as genuine Manuka.
- Manuka honey is different because it has higher anti-microbial effects than other types of honey
Put simply, Manuka honey has the ability to kill bacteria. This has been shown in scientific testing, and is what makes Manuka different to other honeys.
- That anti-microbial effect is from MGO.
See that large number on the front of the pot? That will be the MGO rating.
It refers to how much Methylglyoxal is contained within the honey in milligrams per kilogram.
So 100 MGO honey will have been tested to show it contains 100 milligrams of Methylglyoxal per Kilogram.
- Manuka costs more for a reason…
Like we’ve already mentioned above, genuine Manuka honey can only come from New Zealand.
Like all natural products it cannot be manufactured, only harvested from a crop. Meaning there is a finite amount of Manuka produced each year for sale around the world.
This limited supply does mean that the base price for Manuka is higher than normal table honey, which can be produced anywhere in the world.
Authentic Manuka must also undergo rigorous scientific testing to prove it is the real deal and not a fake or diluted copy.
All Manuka Doctor honey is tested in this way using independent labs before being packed in New Zealand itself and exported to the UK.
- Some Manuka honey you see on the market may not be all it seems
While it may be possible to find cheaper Manuka honey on sale in the UK, for example in discount supermarkets, it is not often clear how this honey has been tested.
Nor that it has been packed in New Zealand itself.
The legal requirements for Manuka are sadly only the law in New Zealand.
It would be possible for an unscrupulous company to export large metal drums of Manuka honey from New Zealand and then re-pack it in a third country where the testing and purity laws are different, meaning the Manuka may become diluted, blended, or adulterated.
It is always worth checking with the retailer or brand, you are buying from to ask questions about where the honey was harvested, where it was packed, and to see the testing certificates for that specific batch.
A previous study found that only one out of seven samples of so-called Manuka honey was found to have the required amount of the active ingredient.1
10 of the best manuka honey products of 2022
Within this article we’ll cover all you need to know about Manuka honey and which is the best Manuka honey available to buy in the UK in 2021.
10 of the best manuka honey products of 2022
Last updated: 26 April 2022
