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The nascent Manuka honey industry of WA has gone the way of manufacturing its own value-added products for food and medicine purposes.
ManukaLife President Paul Callander said the group had partnered with a local manufacturer to produce products including a range of baby products and skincare products, topical antibacterial dressings and Manuka honey pure for $ 300 to $ 500.
High quality Manuka honey can reach 120 kg depending on levels of methylglyoxal (MGO), converted from a Manuka nectar enzyme, but Mr. Callander said that he does not There would be no wholesale exports of WA. "We will not ship honey in bulk, we want to produce products and added value in WA," he said.
"There is a great opportunity for the development of high value-added downstream products in the medical, pharmaceutical, cosmetic and nutraceutical markets."
He said the first products would be used to test the market and evaluate feedback from international customers. Meanwhile, the industry is working to produce enough high grade Manuka honey to meet global demand.
ManukaLife aims to make 3000ha of plantations in the next decade, most contracted on WA farmers' lands, after reaching 1000ha
A plant breeding program of Leptospermum is underway with Kings Park and Botanical Gardens, aiming to to hybridize the plant so that it can be grown in warm and cold climates and its flowering period is extended from six weeks to six months. It is funded by a $ 750,000 three-year grant from the Rural Industries Research and Development Corporation.
ManukaLife is also developing another potentially lucrative product in Manuka Oil, an antibacterial, antifungal and antioxidant that roughly sells for about $ 400 per kilogram, or 10 times more than tea tree oil.
High levels of antibacterial Beta Triketone were confirmed from leaves of one of the types of Leptospermum varieties suitable for WA culture.
"After testing some plantations for manuka oil, we found that beta-tretones had sufficient yield to push them forward."
A new distillation plant is expected to be built in the state of Washington and a new range of products made from harvested oils.
But the best kind of plants Leptospermum for oil is different from the best. Honey-producing plants, a separate plant breeding program is about to begin, aimed at increasing the biomass and yield of oil that can be produced.
At the same time, work is underway to determine the best way to harvest crops. leaves with various machines, and trials have begun on about 100 ha of existing plantations.
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