Family Foods Ltd has launched Europe’s first new Manuka honey brand that’s fully compliant with labelling guidelines published by the New Zealand government.
MGO Manuka Honey is available at 300+mg/kg, 450+mg/kg and 600+mg/kg levels. Therapeutic claims such as ‘Non-Peroxide Activity’, ‘Total Activity’, ‘Total Peroxide Activity’ and ‘Active’ should be removed from labels and advertising, according to the new guidelines.
Manuka honey is a multimillion pound industry in the UK. There are a significant number of brands on sale and much confusion around the on-pack claims and numbers. Some Manuka brands proudly advertise the amount of Peroxide Activity found in the honey, when Peroxide Activity can be found in most varieties of honey from around the world.
MGO Manuka honey is graded on the amount of Methyglyoxal found within the honey. Methylglyoxal is the unique compound that makes Manuka unique from all other honey varieties. As a result, it’s difficult to source and very expensive (when compared to cheap peroxide-based honey).
The New Zealand guidelines were published in July 2014 and it is hoped that the UK Food Standards Agency and UK Trading Standards will adopt all or part of this recent publication.
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