Bee Venom Skincare - new product range on trial

As part of our efforts to expand our product offering, we've got

a brand new to the UK skincare product range on trial.

Bee Venom skincare by Wild Ferns.


Wild Ferns has captured the remarkable benefits of purified Bee Venom from New Zealand combined with Manuka Honey in a range of products that provide a regenerative skin therapy treatment.

Venom from the Bee is renowned for its ability to create a younger looking complexion by stimulating the skin to encourage collagen and elastin production, helping to firm and plump facial tissue.

Not all Bee Venom is equal which is the reason Wild Ferns have used VENZ purified Venom to ensure you get the highest quality available, and ensure it has been obtained in an ethical and humane manner. The bees are not harmed, and happily fly away again with their stings intact.

We will have greater information on the individual products at a later date - we are one of the first in the UK to have them in stock.

The Wild Ferns Bee Venom skincare range includes Moisturiser, Night Creme, a Serum and a Face Mask.

As a popular beauty trend this year, this is your chance to be among the first to try out a very new product range.

Available to order from our website now:
Bee Venom and Manuka Honey Skincare

Fake Manuka Honey in the UK

This morning's Sunday Times has an article saying there is more Manuka honey sold in the UK than what is actually produced in New Zealand, let alone taking into account what is sold in the rest of the world.

Unfortunately this is something that has been suspected within the industry for some time.

There are a couple of points to make. Firstly that it is not a food safety issue at all, we have seen nothing to suggest there is anything wrong from a food safety angle with the problem products. People can still consume them. Rather it is an authenticity issue over what properties are contained in a given brand's products and what they have tested for.

Some brands have been rating there honey on a peroxide activity basis - but this has known problems with research proving that the peroxide based activity is not stable. So we have no idea how they are able to assure that their labeled level of peroxide activity will still exist by the time the consumer buys it.

The other point is that the most common reason people buy manuka honey is with an expectation of receiving something extra to other honeys, and that extra property is the non-peroxide activity.

How do you know if Manuka Honey is Genuine?

Here are 5 tips for consumers to be aware of.

Or you can find examples of genuine UMF Manuka honey here.

The New Zealand Honey Shop has only ever sold UMF certified jars of honey.

Why is manuka honey so expensive?

This is becoming a more common question - 'why is manuka honey so expensive'? Unfortunately it is only likely to become even more expensive in future.

The core issue is a basic one of available supply versus demand. As a natural product, the supply side cannot be quickly changed, and can vary from year to year depending on weather conditions and other things that affect the harvest. It is not a factory produced product, and you can't just ask the bees to do an extra shift.

Genuine Manuka honey contains extra special activity over and above that which is found in all honeys. Peroxide based activity is in all honeys, including Manuka, but is not a stable property and so will often not remain in the jar by the time you come to use it. It is a unique 'non-peroxide' activity that makes genuine Manuka special, and is what the supporting research referred to in the press articles is based on.

So in appreciating that Manuka will be more expensive than other types of honey, it becomes more important to know what you are getting, and be sure that you are receiving a product that does contain the additional unique properties.

Your best assurance of receiving the special extra property in your jar is to choose one that carries the UMF® quality mark. This is the only international quality standard, where verification testing can be done in multiple countries. That becomes important when you consider that as a consumer you cannot see, nor taste the special property but are reliant on the label on the jar.

You can download for free a pdf eLeaflet 'Know Your Manuka Honey' from our website. This gives you the background information on how to know if manuka honey is genuine (click this link to get your copy). It has been prepared in association with the Food and Environment Research Agency in the UK (FERA).

Manuka Honey Health Benefits

When it comes to considering the health benefits of taking Manuka honey, there are two important points to first note.

1. All sellers of Manuka honey, including ourselves, are not doctors or medical professionals, merely having knowledge (to differing degrees) of the product, not being experts in peoples health conditions. If you do have a particular medical or health issue, then you should get advice for that condition from your regular medical professional.

2. Not all Manuka honey products being sold are the same. There is a hydrogen peroxide based activity that is common to al types of honey. Some brands are misleadingly referencing this activity with their test results. The reputation and supporting evidence of Manuka honey is based on a special, extra, non-peroxide based activity. They are two different properties. The best assurance of getting the product you are expecting is with a jar that contains the UMF® quality mark on its label, along with a currently valid license number. The UMF® certification has measured specifically the unique extra non-peroxide activity that relates to the known benefits of this honey.

The main benefits from taking this special food relate to the unique additional antibacterial properties (in UMF® certified jars) that are stable and remain during storage of the jars and when actually using this honey.

While all types of honey can provide some benefits, with UMF® Manuka honey (or approved medical grade products) you are getting additional unique properties to that many users report support their health.


•    Antibacterial properties - unique extra ones not found in regular honey
•    Unique healthy phenolic antioxidants
•    Helps you support a healthy digestive system
•    Soothing properties (many users say it helps them with coughs and sore throats)
•    It is still a natural food - you are not adding anything artificial to your body
•    Research supports sterilised medical grade manuka honey in wound use

UMF^® certified Manuka Honey is independent (and internationally verifiable) proof of the unique additional antibacterial properties of a batch of Manuka, unlike jars that state a number without a UMF logo, for example ‘Active 5’.

Read more about Manuka Honey Health Benefits here.

For those who may be wanting help with their diets or any other aspects of nutrition - then how do you go about finding a suitably qualified nutritionist?

Thankfully - for those of you in the UK anyway - the people at Nutritionist Resource can help.

www.nutritionist-resource.org.uk

The is a search box on their main page where you just enter your postcode, and they will show you a list of qualified nutritionists in your area, along with a few bio and contact details of them.

There is also a series of articles on different aspects of nutrition that you can browse through.

So if its something you would like some professional advice on, have a look to find the qualified people closest to you.

Helping You Spring Clean Without Chemicals

With the arrival (finally) of some lovely warm sunny weather here in the UK, you may be among those stirred into some spring cleaning.

However whether your a sprucing up inside or out, spare a thought for both the environment and your own health before going overboard on chemically laden cleaners and polishes. In many cases there is no need for them, with safer and non-toxic options readily available.

In the easiest and simplest way, this could be just using a damp cloth for dusting and wiping things rather than any bought spray. For tougher spots try a little old fashioned lemon juice.

Soda crystals are more readily available in many shops these days, and can be used to help clean many areas of the home, as well as a less toxic powder for clothes washing.

To replenish and restore your favourite pieces of furniture - here comes our own plug - then look to completely natural and non-toxic Beeplenish polishes. These beeswax furniture polishes give a loving shine back to your wooden or leather furniture, without soaking them in chemicals. The beeswax provides some natural nourishment into the wood or leather, while leaving a protective coating to help extend the life of your favourite things.

For your garden or outdoor furniture, there is the Beeplenish Weather Wax, designed to keep hardwood from cracking drying and oxidizing due to exposure to sun, temperature variations or moisture.

Great Manuka Honey Now Available in High Street Kensington

You can now get genuine quality Manuka honey - with the all important UMF® certification - in High Street Kensington in London.

The New Zealand Honey Shop has begun a partnership with the Pestle & Mortar Pharmacy, located at 213 Kensington High Street, to have some of our most popular products available in a 'mini store' within the pharmacy.

So whilst it won't stock our entire range, The New Zealand Honey Shop in Kensington will offer the core and most popular products. And as established experts in Manuka honey, we know that not all brands of manuka actually contain the special properties, hence we always advise people to look for the UMF® mark on the actual jars.

Starting off you will find a range of strengths of UMF manuka honey, along with the Pot of Gold Balms now available in our Kensington location, inside the pharmacy.

You can view a map of the location on our website here:
The New Zealand Honey Shop Kensington High Street