Our most award winning, and best selling honey, kānuka, has an undeniably unique taste; smooth and light with a rich butterscotch flavour. It is a popular topping for toast, pancakes and waffles, as well as being a delicate addition to puddings and desserts.
However, there is more to this rare honey than just incredible flavour. Although it is less well known than its cousin, mānuka, it is starting to get some well deserved attention from New Zealand based research company The Experiment Company. Looking for ‘the next big thing’ in New Zealand honey, they narrowed down their focus to kānuka after singling it out for a unique feature, Arabinogalactan Proteins (AGPs), which are generally found in higher quantities in kānuka than in other honey varieties. AGPs are a type of glycoprotein classified as immunostimulatory compounds and their benefit in the human body is to stimulate a response from the immune system. AGPs are exciting because of their contribution to wound healing and their ability to reduce inflammation.
While there is still lots more work to be done to uncover the full potential of kānuka honey, we are excited at the prospect of this amazing New Zealand food.
NZ based company Honeylab have also recently released some of their research on Kānuka honey and its ability to kill Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MSRA), an antibiotic resistant superbug that causes skin infections and has been known to close hospital wards. Interestingly the honey performed exceptionally well at killing it. They note that Kānuka honey effectively heals wounds, reduces inflammation and kills bacteria. In their new project, 950 people will participate in a medical trial of Kānuka honey as a topical application to treat cold sores, in association with the Wellington Hospital. They have already run a number of successful trials to treat acne and rosacea with Kānuka honey (yes! You can put it on your face). They are even suggesting that honey could be the answer to antibiotic resistance….
