Midlands Brands Triumph at 2025 London Honey Awards
13 June 2025
Midlands achieved remarkable success at this year’s London International Honey Awards, with all three of our retail brands achieving gold and platinum awards - and Mount Somers securing a particularly impressive accolade.
Alongside achieving a gold award for its UMF 5+ Mānuka honey and a coveted platinum award for its UMF 15+, the latter product was also awarded the #3 spot in the Global Top 10 Honey rank for creamy honey - the only Mānuka honey to be included in the list.
Primal by Nature was recognised for its luxury offerings with a gold award for its UMF 25+ product, and a coveted platinum award for its UMF 15+ product. This is the second year running that these products achieved these accolades.
Meanwhile, PURITI continued its proud legacy of success in the competition, receiving gold for both the UMF 10+ and 20+ Mānuka honey products.
These achievements are simply the latest in a growing list of accolades for each retail brand, further establishing the award-winning nature of the Midlands Apiaries brand. This latest triumph is another reflection of Midlands’ dedication to producing the purest, highest-quality Mānuka honey in New Zealand.
The London International Honey Awards - Inside The Competition
Widely regarded as one of the world’s premier culinary competitions, the London International Honey Awards is an annual recognition of the world’s highest quality honey products. Since 2022, Midlands retail brands have been awarded a range of accolades by a jury panel, made up of honey experts from around the world.
The awards are ranked by three categories - silver, gold and platinum, which is the highest individual award. These awards are given through the “blind method”, which the judges follow to establish which honey products deserve which rank of award.
This method involves tasting each honey product without packaging, or any type of distinctive feature visible. Each product is given a code number to ensure reliable traceability, and samples are carried out by the jury panel of elected judges.
Each judge carries out an organoleptic analysis of each product they taste, and records a numerical rating on an evaluation sheet. The rating is comprised of the general sense of enjoyment (which weighs the most in the final rating), as well as other factors including the appearance, odour, texture, flavour and mouth-feel.
It’s important to note that the products are evaluated based on their individual properties - they don’t compete directly against each other.
The 2025 results were announced at the end of May, Midlands Apiaries brands received six of the twelve gold and platinum accolades awarded to New Zealand retail products.
Midlands Apiaries: Crafting Award Winners, Year After Year
Winning prestigious awards is a testament to Midlands Apiaries’ ongoing commitment to excellence, a philosophy which has always been rooted in upholding the highest standards for every Mānuka honey product.
For Midlands, meeting the requirements set by the New Zealand government and industry bodies isn’t merely a goal, it’s the absolute minimum. The brand consistently pushes these benchmarks, striving for levels of purity and quality that set new industry standards.
This dedication is evidence in every jar of PURITI, Mount Somers and Primal by Nature jar, and it’s precisely why the products consistently achieve top accolades, including their most recent success at the 2025 London International Honey Awards.
Our devotion to award-winning Mānuka honey begins with harvesting methods that are deeply respectful of the Mānuka tree and the bees that use its nectar. Midlands believes in minimal interference with the bees’ natural environment, strategically placing hives in remote hilltops and secluded valleys where the tree thrives.
Dedicated beekeepers often access these remote sites by helicopter, adopting a non-invasive approach to steward the tireless work of the honey bees during the flower’s short season.
The journey continues to within Midlands’ state-of-the-art laboratories. Here, world-class honey undergoes rigorous testing in independent IANZ-certified labs, adhering to strict requirements to ensure every batch of award-winning Mānuka honey is thoroughly tested for authenticity, shelf-life and freshness.
Each jar is validated against stringent brand specifications and customer expectations, guaranteeing compliance with relevant market standards.
This meticulous process is followed for Mānuka honey product that each retail brand produces - and we repeat the process every year, with a quality assurance team carefully analysing every step of the process to ensure steps aren’t missed.
This award-winning attitude has led to impressive accolades, but it’s done to ensure that our customers only receive the finest products available on the market. Our standards never drop, because our reputation is build on producing Mānuka honey that competes in a league of its own.
Your Chance To Experience Award-Winning Standard
Now is the time to taste what the judging panel fell in love with; every jar of award-winning Mānuka honey is available for purchase in each of our respective retail brand stores.
If you fancy trying the #3 ranked creamy honey in the world, according to the London International Honey Awards, Mount Somers offers the chance to purchase and try it for yourself.
Primal by Nature provides platinum-standard UMF 15+ and gold-winning UMF 25+ Mānuka honey on its online store, each delivered in a luxury glass jar and packaged with meticulous care. Meanwhile, PURITI offers its gold-winning UMF 10+ and 20+ Mānuka honey products for your consideration.
Beyond their captivating taste, these retail products have earned their place among the world’s elite. Don’t miss the golden opportunity to experience these exquisite, internationally-recognised honeys that not only delight the palate, but carry the prestige of global accolades.
If you're a business that’s looking to elevate your product offerings and partner with a distinguished Mānuka honey supplier, Midlands invites you to connect with our team.
Our deep commitment to quality, backed by international awards and an ethical approach to producing Mānuka honey, ensures that you receive only the finest honey products available to the market. We offer a range of UMF-certified Mānuka honey products, perfect for retail, food service or as a premium ingredient in your own product lines.
Partnering with Midlands means aligning your brand with excellence and offering your customers a taste of New Zealand's most revered natural treasure. Reach out to discuss how we can become your