UMF ratings are the gold standard when it comes to manuka honey, but which honey producer takes the crown for the highest grade?
In this article, we'll take a look at some of the purest manuka honey ever produced, and where you can get your hands on it today.
Primal By Nature UMF 32+ Limited Edition
Primal By Nature is a luxury boutique manuka honey producer based in New Zealand.
Primal By Nature produces manuka honey of all grades, however, their UMF 32+ product is something special.
Primal By Nature has crafted this manuka honey in an extremely controlled environment, and using their 100+ years of beekeeping experience, they have slowly matured this into a honey that's received one of the highest UMF certifications ever.
This is one of the rarest and purest manuka honey's ever produced, with an MGO level of 1,818+.
They didn't skimp on the presentation either.
Nested in a hand-crafted red lacquer wooden case, embossed metal labels and a hand signed certificate of authenticity, this is no ordinary jar of honey.
All honey by Primal By Nature is UMF certified and independently DNA tested to ensure it is 100% pure and genuine monofloral Manuka Honey.
Not only is this one of the world's purest manuka honeys ever produced, it's also one of the rarest - only 600 jars were ever produced.
If you're looking for a gift for a honey lover that will knock their socks off, you won't get much better than this.
Manuka South UMF 32+ Limited reserve
Manuka South's Limited Reserve range is some of the most impressive manuka honey ever to hit the market.
Sourced from a remote location in the Northland region of New Zealand, Manuka South was able to achieve the coveted UMF 32+ grading through decades of expert beekeeping experience.
What you should understand is producing manuka honey to this level of purity is as much down to luck as it is skill. Manuka flowers only bloom around 3-6 weeks per year, and to produce a honey of this potency requires absolutely perfect conditions.
Not only that, the bees must be immaculately controlled to ensure the honey is not contaminated with nectar from other flowers.
The growing conditions that make this possible occur literally once in a generation.
Manuka South's UMF 32+ product has an MGO level of 1,835, one of the highest MGO ratings ever produced.
Fittingly, it is packaged in absolute luxury - a bespoke wooden case with 18 karat gold plated finishing with the jar itself nested in a Danish reconstituted leather interior.
If that wasn't enough, this could possibly be the rarest manuka honey to ever hit the market - only 300 jars were produced, and as we said, it may be a while before anything like this is ever made again - the conditions to produce honey of this calibre only come once in a generation.
It does not get much better than this!
The True Honey Co UMF 28+ ULTRA PREMIUM
The True Honey Co runs one of the most intricate manuka honey operations in the world.
Their hives are nestled in pristine manuka forests, so remote they are only accessible by helicopter.
Remember - producing manuka honey is a delicate process, and much of it depends on the environment. When a honey is produced in an untouched manuka forest, far from possible pollutants and impurities, in rich soil unadulterated by civilisation, not only do you get honey of world-leading purity, these all come through in the flavour and texture as well.
The results speak for themselves, with True Honey Co having previously produced the purest manuka honey in history - achieving and MGO reading over 2,000; the highest MGO grading ever recorded.
While everything from that harvest has now sold out, they still consistently produce top-end manuka, and their highest UMF graded product is from their Ultra Premium Manuka range, graded at UMF 28+/MGO 1,500.
This is one of the highest UMF manuka honeys available in the world today.
What we love most about this is the packaging. The black-on-black with the gold plating, the glass jar - it's not too extravagant, but has luxury written all over it - a perfect balance.
New Zealand Honey Co. UMF 28+
New Zealand Honey Co is one of our favourite manuka honey brands, for the simple reason they've made high quality manuka honey accessible to much of the world. Their UMF 28+ graded honey is no exception.
NZ Honey Co produces their honey from a carefully selected group of apiaries from around New Zealand. Their raw, organic manuka honey is certified glyphosate-free and every jar is UMF graded.
The result is some of the highest quality manuka honey to come out of New Zealand.
To produce a UMF 28+ graded honey is no easy feat. It requires absolute dedication to the beekeeping process, a healthy manuka bloom, almost perfect conditions, and a tightly controlled hive operation.
Amazingly, you'll notice that this UMF 28 product is significantly less expensive than the others on this list. The fact that NZ Honey Co has been able to bring manuka honey of this purity to the world at such an accessible price is truly quite remarkable, and for some people, is even at a price point where they can realistically have it as part of their daily diet.
If you're looking to experience some of the purest manuka honey ever made, without destroying your bank account, this is exactly what you're looking for.
