The honey is part of The True Honey Company’s range of high-quality Manuka honey called Rare Harvest that has a unique manuka factor of 33.
Only 200 230g jars of the honey were produced, and Harrods in London bought the lot.
The honey is from the 2019-20 season and sold by Harrods for more than £2500, which equates to just under $5000.
True Honey chief executive Jim McMillan says as far as he’s aware, it’s some of the highest-rated Manuka honey ever produced.
The Dannevirke-based company flies in its 6500 hives by helicopter to remote active manuka-producing locations throughout the North Island and the top of the South Island.
He credits the placement of those hives, the skill and expertise of the company’s workforce, and the weather conditions aligning for the purity of the honey sold to Harrods.
The UK luxury retailer has been stocking True Honey products for a few years and McMillan says the honey is also sold into Arab states, including Oman, Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia and Dubai, along with European nations like Switzerland, Austria and Germany.
They are also in negotiation with luxury outlets in the United States and China.
McMillan says the company prides itself on the relationship it has with the landowners of the locations of its hives.
“They are an extension of our team of partners. They are an essential part of the production of high-grade honey,” he said.
The majority of True Honey products are exported, but it can be ordered on the company’s website.
Although the Rare Harvest honey was the purest produced, McMillan says they are continually trying to push boundaries to try and produce even higher grade honey.
