Current honey research at the University of Waikato

Abstract

To put what has become a very large part of our research into context, I briefly outline the history of the chance finding by a PhD student at the University of Dresden in 2005 that few samples of manuka honey examined in a survey of foodstuffs contained an exceptionally high level of MGO, which lead to the proposal in 2006 that MGO, is the antibacterial component of manuka honey. It was the bringing of this to the attention of the world by Manuka Health in July 2007 that led to six of our research group having to work very hard for the past year on gaining an understanding of how MGO forms in manuka honey, seeking scientific substance can be safely consumed when it is in manuka honey, and that when in contact with wound tissues at the high levels at which it occurs in undiluted honey, it does not interfere with the healing process.