Science of Honey

Honey has been used since ancient times for its special properties.   Good quality honey can be high in beneficial plant compounds including antioxidants.  It contains a number of nutrients (see below) and has high levels of glucose and fructose which offers a healthier alternative to refined sugar making it a great source of energy.   However, the composition of a honey batch depends on the floral source(s) available to the bees that produced the honey.

Nelson Honey operates a team of beekeepers and has hives are located throughout the beautiful regions at top of the South Island of New Zealand.  Hives enjoy spectacular and remote locations including  Maori Bay in the Marlborough Sounds and Rainbow Station in St Arnaud.

Here at Nelson Honey we can trace our honey back to the hives they came from and our team of beekeepers maintain the health and happiness of all our bees.

Manuka Honey

There has been much research done on the components of manuka honey, leading to worldwide acclaim of this wonderful honey.

Manuka Honey is unique to New Zealand and its special benefits have been a traditional part of folklore throughout New Zealand’s settled history.

At Nelson Honey, we test all our Manuka Honey for MGO (Methylglyoxal) activity along with other chemical markers to ensure that it is authentic manuka honey.   Methylglyoxal is expressed as a minimum number of mg/kg and scientific evidence has confirmed it as being a key compound that occurs naturally in Manuka honey.

Honeydew Honey

While Manuka Honey is extremely well-known for its special properties, our Honeydew Honey may also offer some excellent health benefits. It contains much higher levels of complex sugars called Oligosaccharides than nectar (or floral) honey.

Research shows Oligosaccharides are important to maintaining a healthy digestive system and work as a prebiotics support the growth of good bacteria in the gut.

Honeydew Honey also contains higher levels of antioxidants and minerals compared to other floral honeys.

Further reading

The National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI) offers a great source of published research about honey. Below are links to several interesting articles.

Identification and Quantitation of 2-Acetyl-1-pyrroline in Manuka Honey (Leptospermum scoparium). http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26365614