Why PURITI Mānuka Honey protects its New Zealand heritage

Mānuka honey is perhaps one of New Zealand’s most profound natural exports. Not only because of the product - which stands apart due to its high MGO ratings - but its deep New Zealand roots that makes it an authentic, native honey. 

This is why PURITI’s mānuka honey is 100% locally owned - it’s collected from a native bush and created within hives that are built and maintained by locals who know the land. It’s a product that’s been discovered, developed and refined by Kiwis, so PURITI works hard to preserve mānuka’s New Zealand roots. 

From production, to certification and packaging, PURITI has gone above and beyond to produce a brand of native honey in the most sustainable and ethical ways possible, because mānuka’s history reflects the type of natural quality that defines New Zealand. 

Mānuka Honey’s New Zealand Roots

Considered one of New Zealand’s most iconic and beloved natural substances, the “liquid gold” that is mānuka dates back as early as indigenous Maori. The population were known to use the redwoods from the Mānuka bush to create tools - like weapons, spades and bird spears. Meanwhile the plant’s bark would be used as a naturopathic remedy to treat wounds, or prevent gum disease.

Then Captain James Cook discovered New Zealand and found that the mānuka leaf could be used as an alternative to tea. He then found another use for the leaf, using it instead as a treatment to reduce the impacts of scurvy - or vitamin C deficiency - amongst the men who sailed with him.

Sadly as the decades progressed, mānuka began to loose its value. Beekeepers would lament at how difficult they found it to extract the product from their hives, plus its flavour was considered far too overwhelming to enjoy. 

In fact, it wasn’t until the 1980’s that a prominent biochemist, Dr Peter Molan took an interest in the mānuka plant and began experimenting on its honey in a controlled lab environment,  in turn discovering it had an antibacterial capability. 

Molan’s research dramatically changed the very reputation of mānuka, transforming it from a product that nobody wanted to a greatly beloved and desired brand of honey that is now shipped around the globe. 

Native Honey Created By Kiwi Ingenuity

As the liquid gold rush for mānuka began to heat up, questions began to arise over where the product had come from in the first place - and why New Zealand seemed (at the time) to be the only country the honey came from. 

The creation of mānuka honey begins with the dynamic work and labour of our well-loved honeybees, who tirelessly collect nectar from the blossoms of Leptospermum scoparium - more commonly known as the Mānuka Tree. 

For only a brief six-week period, this tree will bloom and honeybees will rush to collect its goodness from within the petals. These majestic trees, some found in remote regions of New Zealand, are the birthplace of mānuka honey and are native to New Zealand.

The bees were, naturally, one step ahead of New Zealand’s citizens. It took the curiosity of a New Zealand beekeeper, Terry Bone, to notice the bee’s strange relationship with the mānuka tree compared to the other plants. 

He’d noticed that his bees were choosing to gather nectar from the mānuka bush, in turn ignoring other nearby flowers for seemingly no reason. It prompted Bone to explore deeper into the honey that was being produced from his hives, which ultimately led to mānuka honey’s initial development. 

This was the first major step taken by New Zealand to refine a 100% locally-made resource. The second step, taken by Dr Molan, involved researching the mānuka product extensively within his laboratory at the University of Waikato. 

His investigation uncovered the remarkable connection between the activity of mānuka honey and the presence of a compound known as methylglyoxal (MGO). While other honey products have been known to carry much smaller degrees of MGO, mānuka honey carried an exponentially higher concentration of the chemical compound. 

These two revelations came together and resulted in a product that reflected New Zealand’s world-class capabilities for honey development. Mānuka was a local invention using local products, resulting in a show stopping honey that revolutionised the industry. 

PURITI’s 100% Locally-Owned Product

Inspired by mānuka honey’s story and heritage, PURITI has a delicate approach towards creating and producing its mānuka honey, being careful not to interrupt a cycle that’s been naturally occurring for thousands of years. After all, the honey is already perfect - we just want to present that perfection in the most authentic way possible.

It all begins with the New Zealand landscapes - the flourishing greenery where bees thrive as they produce the sweet mānuka gold. That’s why we’ve set up our hives in the heart of these lush, remote environments where the mānuka bushes have always grown so abundantly. Some of these locations are so remote that beekeepers require helicopters to access the hives, but it’s worth it to preserve the product’s New Zealand roots.

This is also a crucial step in the mānuka production process, because it ensures the bees have access to the purest possible nectar. By keeping the hives in such pristine locations, we can guarantee the highest-quality mānuka honey. 

When the time is right, the beekeepers will carefully begin the harvesting process. To ensure the Kiwi spirit of conservation, there will be particular attention given to make sure the bees aren’t harmed during the process. The honeycombs are removed from the hives and the honey is extracted using specialised methods. 

Producing UMF-Certified Mānuka Honey With Kiwi Quality

Quality control is of the strictest importance to PURITI’s mānuka products. Once harvested, the honey will undergo a methodical series of testing and certification processes to ensure it meets the standards of a world-class New Zealand product. 

Because it reflects an iconic New Zealand export, PURITI will go above and beyond to ensure the highest possible standards are met. Each batch is tested for its MGO content, plus other critical markers such as the Unique Mānuka Factor (UMF). 

The UMF rating will measure the honey’s purity and potency, something that guarantees the product can genuinely be considered high quality. Because we deeply value the traditions and roots of mānuka honey, PURITI’s products only ever hit the highest percentile of this rating. 

Each jar of honey that we sell exceeds the minimum leptosperin and MGO concentrations set by UMF™HA. As a result, consumers can buy from PURITI confidently, knowing that we are only selling 100% genuine New Zealand Mānuka honey.

Mānuka Honey’s Story Lives On Through PURITI’s Product

All of PURITI’s mānuka honey products are a proud reflection of their native relationship with New Zealand. From its indigenous roots, to its development and cultivation from Kiwis who recognised its properties, mānuka honey is the result of a nation that prides itself on its natural substances. 

This is why PURITI works hard to preserve the New Zealand roots of Mānuka at all costs. Because it’s unique, it’s a product that wasn’t designed in a lab - but forged in the native forests and landscapes that define New Zealand. The heritage is too special to leave behind, so PURITI incorporates the native honey into every step of production. 

When you purchase PURITI’s mānuka honey, you’re not just purchasing a high quality honey that contains fantastic natural ingredients. You’re buying a slice of New Zealand, a portion of its story that’s bottled into a beautiful jar and ready to be enjoyed.