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Written by Carolyn Ditchfield
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Friday, 10 July 2009 11:45 |
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Extract from Organic Advantage Ed. 123 (BFA e-newsletter) July 2009
An Australian
Certified Organic (ACO)
honey company has launched a medicinal grade honey derived from a native
Australian plant which contains more potent levels of non-peroxide active antibacterial
activity than recorded in any other product on the market worldwide.
Research has highlighted the potential of the honey to act as a
medical agent with the capacity to kill harmful bacteria, strengthen immune
systems and aid in the recovery of everything from strep throat to skin wounds
and scars.
The 'wonder
honey' will be
marketed under the trade name Berringa Honey, a subsidiary of the Australian
Organic Honey Company which has produced high grade Australian Eucalypt honey
for food consumption for the past twenty years.
The honey currently
contains un-matched levels of
Methylglyoxal (MG) - a compound
naturally formed in honey as a result of chemical reactions by green
photosynthesising plants (1).
MG activity in Berringa honey, made under a certified organic
production system from the native genus Leptospermum Polygalifolium (a type of tea tree), has been recorded consistently at
levels of + 1,600 mg/kg.
This is well ahead of regular honey which typically has
not been found to contain levels in excess of 5 mg/kg (2).
Peter Woodward,
founder of the Australian Organic Honey Company says he was astonished when
research conducted over six years revealed unheard of levels of antibacterial
activity in his product.
''We realised we had found something
in Australia that was incredibly unique - a honey product with higher
levels of MG activity than has been verified anywhere else in the world!'' he says.
Giles Tilley,
CEO of Berringa says the difference comes down to plants.
''Berringa honey is solely derived
from bee activity around the Australian native Leptospermum Polygalifolium.
''The plant
occupies coastal habitats and only grows in a small area from the north coast of
New South Wales and Southern Queensland in Australia''. (Leptospermum Polygalifolium
grows uncultivated from the south coast of New South Wales to Cape York in
Northern Queensland).
''Our hives are placed only
in the vicinity of the flowering genus and harvested honey is not mixed with
pollen from any other varieties. And because of our certified organic status, we
keep well away from chemically treated trees.''
Berringa now
joins Manuka Honey, harvested from a similar plant in New Zealand, in catering
to the world'sincreasing demand
for medicinal honey products.
Mr. Woodward says market interest has
already been ''phenomenal''.
''We have launched in the UK
and Japan and in both countries we received an extremely high level of interest.
We predict the bulk of our medi-honey market will be for export.''
Mr. Woodward
says Berringa honey is expected to be available in Australia from the end of
September 2009 -
''initially in health stores followed by chemists''.
The first round
of Berringa honey to be made commercially available in Australia will contain MG
levels of around 550 mg/kg in a
175g container.
Data:
(1) Antibacterial Potential
of Australian Berringa Honey, 2009: Click
here
(2) Identification and quantification of methylglyoxal as
the dominant antibacterial constituent of Manuka
(Leptospermum
scoparium) honeys from New
Zealand, 2008, Institute of Food Chemistry, Technische Universit, Dresden,
Germany: Click
here
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