manuka

 Incorrectly labelled manuka

Britain's Food Standards Agency

has issued a nationwide warning

about misleading and illegal claims

made on the labels of manuka honey jars,

it is a worrying blow to the fast-growing Kiwi industry.

New Zealand manuka honey

commands prices 10 to 20 times higher

than other types of honey

because of its unique and much-vaunted

anti-bacterial properties.

It is estimated to earn this country

up to $120 million a year in export dollars,

UK retailers have been putting security tags

on jars of manuka honey

to stop sticky-fingered shoplifters taking jars

which can retail at up to £35 ($70) per 250g.

But tests by reputable UK, Chinese and Singaporean laboratories reveal many manuka honey products have none of the claimed active properties -

some of the honey is not even manuka —

prompting industry leaders to demand a crackdown on "potentially huge fraud".

The UK warning about manuka honey

follows the Fonterra botulism scare

affecting milk product exports

around the globe,

and China's conviction of a Zespri employee

and subsidiary for double invoicing on kiwifruit shipments.

Some of the companies selling mislabelled honey

are New Zealand producers and some are foreign.

But even the most reputable New Zealand honey producers now face heightened surveillance in the UK.

 New Zealand products were not meeting the required standards.