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MELBOURNE (Reuters) – A New Zealand company pleaded guilty on Thursday to adding artificial chemicals to its premium manuka honey, media reports said in a lawsuit over a major product. value for the country.
New Zealand Food Safety filed a lawsuit against Evergreen Life Ltd, a Auckland-based company, whose products had been removed from shelves in 2016 by the Ministry of Primary Industries, claiming that they could contain "non-hazardous substances". approved. "
The demand for honey, which would have beneficial effects on health and cosmetics, has increased worldwide, especially for manuka honey, harvested from the flowers of plants native to New Zealand and Australia .
Different species of the plant grow in other parts of the world, but they do not produce the flowers needed for honey, which makes the manuka more expensive, with a small pot that can sell for a few hundred dollars.
Manuka is also considered to have better antibacterial properties than other honeys, in part because it naturally contains an omega acid called DHA and an antacid called MGO.
Evergreen reportedly added synthetic chemicals to increase levels of antibacterial agents, allowing the company to sell honey at a higher price, according to New Zealand Radio, a public service.
Neither Evergreen nor the Ministry of Primary Industries responded to requests for comment.
New Zealand ranks as the world's 14th largest exporter of honey and ranks second in terms of value, according to data from New Zealand's government trade and business agency.
In 2017, New Zealand exported nearly $ 270 million worth of honey, nearly double what it was in 2013. Manuka honey is considered responsible for most exports.
Sentencing in the Evergreen case is scheduled for later this month.
Report by Lidia Kelly; Edited by Nick Macfie
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