Frequently Asked Questions

Bees use nectar from flowers to make honey. Bees have a special pouch, which is in fact a separate stomach, to collect the nectar. An enzyme in the bees’ 'honey stomach’  breaks down the nectar and helps produce the honey that the bees store in their hive.

Active honey contains a naturally occurring antibacterial component called methylglyoxal (or MGO). The higher the MGO content, the higher the activity level of the honey. MGO is converted from DHA (Dihydroxyacetone), which is contained in the nectar of selected flowering tree species.

Any activity in honey is beneficial for general gut health, immunity and well being (MGO levels typically from 30, with honey ingested), with the highest grades (MGO 450+) having medical applications (applied externally) in fighting antibiotic-resistant bacterial and fungal infections (such as golden staph), as burn treatment and anti-inflammatory.

Mt Caroline active honey derives from nectar from the Leptospermum Nitens variety that is endemic (native and unique) to the area. These trees are from the same species as the more widely known Manuka trees (Leptospermum Scoparium) that underpin the New Zealand Manuka active honey industry. 

Mt Caroline active honey is pure honey straight from the hive to the jar with absolutely no additives. The nectar from which bees make our honey comes from the Nitens variety of the Leptospermum, which produces 3 to 4 times as much DHA (Dihydroxyacetone) as the Scoparium variety (which is the New Zealand manuka). DHA is a precursor of the bioactive component found in honey, MGO (methylglyoxal). Our honey comes from a combination of clusters of naturally occurring trees (wildstands) and initial trial plantings.

The reason the tested MGO in our honey is relatively low compared to the tested DHA in the nectar is because around the wildstands there is a variety of other flowering plants and trees that the bees have access to.

Honey can be kept indefinitely. Activity in honey increases after harvesting and peaks in two years, however thereafter it slowly decreases.  Because our honey is untreated and has no additives, the natural sugars in the honey will bind together and begin to form little crystals, which can start to make the honey more solid. This process can be simply reversed through putting the jar in a bowl of hot (not boiling) water. It’s important to not use too hot water as it risks the destruction of beneficial compounds, which starts to happen when honey is at temperatures over 40 degrees C.
Honey is best kept outside of the fridge at room temperature.

Mt Caroline active honey is pure honey straight from the hive to the jar with absolutely no additives. The nectar from which bees make our honey comes from the Nitens variety of the Leptospermum, which produces 3 to 4 times as much DHA (Dihydroxyacetone) as the Scoparium variety (which is the New Zealand manuka). DHA is a precursor of the bioactive component found in honey, MGO (methylglyoxal). Our honey comes from a combination of clusters of naturally occurring trees (wildstands) and initial trial plantings.

The reason the tested MGO in our honey is relatively low compared to the tested DHA in the nectar is because around the wildstands there is a variety of other flowering plants and trees that the bees have access to.