This comes following news that South Canterbury-based honey producer 100% Pure New Zealand Honery is merging with Waikato-domiciled, Three Peaks Mānuka Honey.
The new business will trade as The Mānuka Collective.
Founded in 1995 by Steve Lyttle and Carolyn Ball, 100% Pure New Zealand Honey is a packer and exporter based in Timaru. The company currently exports to more than 20 countries around the world. Last year, the business was recognised with the Supreme Trophy, at the annual Apiculture NZ Honey Awards.
Three Peaks Mānuka Honey was established in 2015 and is considered one of New Zealand's premier mānuka honey companies. It was founded by the Perry Group, a family-owned business based in the Waikato. To date, Three Peaks Mānuka Honey has focused on producing high-quality mānuka honey and establishing strategic partnerships with landowners, such as the East Taupo Lands Trust.
100% Pure New Zealand Honey chief executive Sean Goodwin describes the merger as a great opportunity for both companies.
"We will be able to leverage complementary capabilities within the value chain," he says.
"Within the fragmented industry there is a predominance of small companies that lack critical mass, and this prevents us from achieving our full potential. It's the shared view of both companies that there is a clear and attractive opportunity for a land-to-brand collective of organisations to scale-up and succeed, by meeting the requirements of the changing global landscape."
Goodwin claims The Mānuka Collective is a new and exciting approach.
"It represents the joining together of entities across the honey supply chain, that all share a common vision," he explains. "Our vision is to create a world class end-to-end honey collective and to spread the goodness of mānuka globally."
Goodwin says currently The Mānuka Collective includes 100% Pure New Zealand Honey and Three Peaks Mānuka Honey, plus their landowner shareholders.
"It is our intention that the collective will grow to include other stakeholders and we are actively evaluating new opportunities."
He says The Mānuka Collective is fortunate to have a great team and strong relationships with customers, landowners, and independent beekeepers.
"We look forward to continuing to partner with our suppliers as we enter this exciting new phase of development."
UK Fight Goes On
The NZ Mānuka Honey Industry says it remains steadfast in protecting the term 'Mānuka Honey' for all New Zealanders.
Both the Mānuka Charitable Trust and Mānuka Honey Appellation Society says they support the decision of Mānuka Honey Appellation Society and Unique Mānuka Factor Honey Association (UMFHA) to pursue an appeal on a point of law regarding the UK Intellectual Property Office ruling on the mānuka honey Certification Trademark application.
"Our shared goal remains to protect the term mānuka honey internationally so that it may only be lawfully used on products containing mānuka honey from Aotearoa New Zealand."
This follows a recent landmark win in the UK by the Australian Mānuka Honey Association defending the right to the term mānuka honey.
However, the NZ group says it remains strongly of the view that it is not appropriate for honey producers in another country to use the name mānuka honey when the plant the nectar came from did not grow in Aotearoa New Zealand.
It also claims this is an indigenous rights issue and is out of step with existing indigenous IP frameworks and consumers' demand for authenticity and quality.
