International Testing of NZ Honey

International Testing of NZ Honey

Oritain’s investment in a nationwide honey map has paid off. On a recent trip to the US, Oritain officials purchased manuka honey directly from US company packaging and reselling it as a “Product of New Zealand”. The sample was brought back to NZ and tested. Oritain was able to scientifically verify that it was from NZ. Additionally, they could confirm its floral type (manuka) without the need to look at pollen count.

“It is an exciting development” said Mike Darling, NZ operations manager for Oritain “We have invested heavily in building a data reference map of NZ honey. Oritain is now at the stage where we can test honeys in the international marketplace against our data and determine if they are truly of NZ origin.” Furthermore, Oritain works with an international team of scientists, “We no longer need to bring samples back to NZ. Rather we provide approved laboratories with the testing regime. They undertake the analyses and we can compare that with our reference data”.

Mr Darling explained that the need to prove where honey comes from and what floral type it is stems from the increasing number of incidents of adulterated or contaminated honey being potentially rebranded as from NZ. “Put simply, when a bad sample shows up anywhere in the world, we can quickly and simply check if its origin is truly NZ. This is critical to maintaining the integrity of the NZ honey brand”.

Mr Darling said that Oritain are working with a number of NZ honey producers to proactively map and brand their products before they get into the market place. This method protects their products and increases consumer confidence by providing independent assurance of authenticity. Oritain is checking their products in the marketplace – helping to protect those producers from misrepresentation.

ENDS

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