UMF Honey Association Announces Singapore Testing Regime

NEWS RELEASE
26 July 2011

UMF Honey Association Announces Singapore Testing Regime

The UMF Honey Association and AsureQuality Singapore have jointly announced the availability of a testing regime to determine non-peroxide activity in Manuka Honey sold in Singapore.

UMF Honey Association General Manager, John Rawcliffe, said the announcement would come as welcome news to consumers in Singapore.

“The new Singapore-based test will ensure that Manuka Honey sold in that country is from New Zealand and true to label - in line with the core industry standard as originally determined by Peter Molan of Waikato University.”

AsureQuality Singapore (a state-owned company of the New Zealand Government) is providing analytical support to the UMF Honey Association through its Singapore Laboratory. It will coordinate analysis of honey and other New Zealand primary products exported to Asia to provide added confidence to retailers and consumers.

Mr Rawcliffe said he expected other tests would soon become available in Singapore to further protect both consumers and the New Zealand honey industry as a whole.

“This has been a major initiative by the UMF Honey Association linking laboratories in the world market to protect what is a unique product that achieves high visibility for New Zealand.”

He said the announcement was made late last week at an industry forum in Singapore attended by retailers of Manuka Honey from as far afield as Malaysia and Hong Kong.

ENDS