Honey the hot new taste topic

Media Release
Airborne Honey, August 2012

Honey the hot new taste topic

Forget the vegemite/marmite debate – honey is emerging as the hot topic in taste differentiation.

Where once people believed honey was simply honey, a new national competition has highlighted the distinct taste and flavour differences in New Zealand monofloral honey – honey made predominantly from one single nectar source.

The inaugural Airborne Honey MonoFloral Honey Competition aims to raise awareness of New Zealand’s unique honey types, and show the outstanding flavour and taste that can be achieved with stringent quality control and traceability from hive to jar.

Lindis Honey took out the 2012 Supreme Gold Award with a Southern Kamihi Honey, a lesser known honey, but much sought after by beekeepers in the know for its strong flavour and complex flavours and after tones.

Competition Judge Maureen Maxwell says the winner was a superb example of this floral source.

“This year’s harvest has produced a pale, delicately coloured honey of subtle musk aroma. Its flavour is rich, lusciously sweet with a melt in the mouth buttery texture.”

Maureen says New Zealand produces some of the finest honey in the world, so it’s wonderful to see awards that celebrate the excellence of both honey and beekeepers.

“Within the industry the competition encourages skilful foraging, careful and considered extraction and bottling. To truly represent 100% pure New Zealand honey, every part of the process from site selection to jar is vital. The public can have confidence that exceptional quality is represented by these Award stickers.”

And the delights of our monofloral honeys are being increasingly appreciated internationally, with Airborne Honey – New Zealand’s oldest honey company - now exporting to 18 countries throughout the world.

Airborne Honey Chief Executive Peter Bray says Airborne’s honey is shaping up to be one of New Zealand’s up-and-coming export success stories.

“Just as we’ve seen with wine and merino, people around the world are seeking out our honey as a high quality, natural product that captures a unique taste of New Zealand. With the backing of 100 years of honey making and cutting edge technology, we can offer consistently high quality, unprocessed honey that tastes great.”

“And Airborne’s commitment to being able to trace each jar back to source is really coming into play, with a global push for people to know exactly what they’re eating. We’re really encouraged by the growth we’ve seen internationally, with some more exciting trade deals currently underway. This is certainly an export story to watch.”

The award winning honeys will be available as limited edition gold and silver packs in Foodstuffs supermarkets in Wellington and throughout the South Island from early October 2012.

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