Manuka is a world-famous NZ honey with incredible healing properties, but it used to be the bane of beekeepers; it was very thick and didn’t want to come out of the comb. Also, no one really wanted to buy it as it had such strong flavour. Fortunately, forty years ago Kerry Simpson, a curious Hamilton high school teacher, noticed some unusual healing properties of manuka compared to other honeys and with biochemist, Peter Molan, discovered its unique healing powers. All honey is naturally good for healing wounds; it has been used for thousands of years to dress infected cuts. Honey has several distinct properties that kills germs and help wounds to heal – it is quite acidic; it produces hydrogen peroxide when diluted; honey is hygroscopic, being a super-saturated sugar solution it will absorb moisture until it is stable, in a wound it will dry out bacteria, killing them. Manuka has other properties that makes it even more potent, this is known as non-peroxide activity, it is high in phenol. Phenol is a powerful natural antiseptic with antimicrobial properties.
With these combined properties it would not be possible for disease to become resistant to manuka honey. We are now seeing resistance to antibiotics and some countries have superbugs that can’t be touched by traditional Western medicine. Manuka has been successful in healing ulcers and other infected wounds that modern medicine hasn’t been able to treat. Hospitals worldwide now use these manuka dressings for stubborn ulcers and skin conditions. Some studies on other benefits of manuka have been shown that manuka honey is indeed nature’s healer; not only used on skin conditions like acne but also for digestive issues and sore throats.
My hives are mostly rural and there is usually some manuka nearby, which means that my honey usually contains some manuka. Honey from manuka and other sources is called multi-floral. Honey from only manuka is called mono-floral manuka honey and is much more potent and valuable.
Manuka honey is thixotropic, like a non-Newtonian fluid, when vibrated it changes its physical state and becomes less viscous. There are two ways to get manuka honey out of a honey frame, the first is to cut it out of the frame and then crush the honeycomb. The second method is more elegant, vibrate the honey to liquefy it and it will then spin out in the extractor. We use vibrating needles or a roller-pricker to agitate the honey to get it out.
Honey has been a very low price for several years now with many commercial beekeepers going out of business. Manuka honey still commands a good price overseas, but we are seeing increasing competition with “manuka” from other countries. We are fortunate in New Zealand with unique flora that produce some distinct and delicious honey; next time instead of buying generic “honey”, try a mono-floral honey like Pohutukawa, Kamahi, Kanuka or Manuka.
