How to store your Manuka Honey in the perfect way

There are many premium products you can purchase from the health food store; Manuka Honey is one of them.  And because you’ve invested your money in them, it’s vitally important to know how to store them, to ensure you keep the product – in this case Manuka Honey – in the best condition.

We’re regularly asked by our customers who are buying their first pot of Manuka Honey, how they should store it to make sure it doesn’t get damaged.  So, we thought we’d write this blog post all about it, to share with you all.

TIP 1. DO NOT REFRIGERATE YOUR MANUKA HONEY

It is a misconception that refrigerating superfoods is the way to keep them fresh, unfortunately this does not apply to Manuka Honey, or in fact any type of honey, as the coldness from the fridge could lead to solidifying its consistency and eventually contributing to it crystalising.  Whilst crystallisation in honey is a regular occurrence because it’s a natural sugar product, you want to avoid this if you can.

TIP 2. STORE YOUR MANUKA HONEY IDEALLY BETWEEN THE TEMPERATURE OF 10 - 15 DEGREE CELSIUS

It’s important to make sure that your Manuka Honey doesn’t boil, or get too hot (over 30 degrees) otherwise you are killing off the natural enzymes you’re paying so much for.  The optimum temperature for storing Manuka Honey is within the a temperature range of between 10-15 degree celsius.  This will help to maintain a runny texture, and more importantly as many of the natural enzymes as possible, just as nature intended! 

TIP 3. STORE YOUR MANUKA HONEY IN A CUPBOARD OR DARK PLACE

You should always avoid storing your Manuka Honey in direct sunlight because prolonged heat & sunlight exposure can damage the active enzymes.  This is particularly important if you have a pot of Manuka Honey in a glass jar - normally a Manuka Honey that has been potted in Europe.  For Manuka Honey in plastic jars – normally a Manuka Honey that has been potted in New Zealand – it’s slightly more protected but we still recommend it being stored in a cupboard or dark place to protect it.

TIP 4. KEEP YOUR MANUKA HONEY IN ITS ORIGINAL CONTAINER

The original design of your Manuka Honey jar, be it plastic or glass, is the best packaging to store your honey in.  Do not transfer it to another jar as not only do you lose honey in the transfer, but you risk it being transferred to a jar that is not suitable for honey which means it’s integrity can be damaged.  The black plastic jar helps the honey to avoid direct sunlight as well as helps to insulate the honey against cold in the winter. All of them are food safety approved, and most of them are BPA free and fully recyclable.  Whereas honey stored in glass jars are more sensitive to heat variations and end up with the possibility of getting too hot in the summer and too cold in the winter.   No matter the type of storage container, we still strongly recommend that you keep your Manuka Honey in a cupboard or dark place to avoid the possibility of deteriorating your Manuka Honey enzymes.  After all, that’s what you’re paying so much money for!

TIP 5. BE CAUTIOUS OF EXPIRY & BEST BEFORE DATE - NOT EVERYTHING IS HOW IT UTIOUS OF EXPIRY & BEST BEFORE DATES – NOT EVERYTHING IS HOW IT SEEMS

Did you know that honey doesn’t expire? They are still finding pots of honey that are being pulled out of the pyramids that are still perfectly edible (although to be fair, we don’t think we’d be brave enough to try it).

You only need to legally put an expiry date on a pot of honey if you pot honey commercially (so over 10,000 pots per year).  So, if you’re a local beekeeper, and you produce under this quantity (which most will do), they can still sell, and you can still legally buy a pot of honey that is over 5 years old – no date needs to be shown.  Most commercial honey packers / beekeepers will put an expiry date of between 2 and 5 years which is deemed the most appropriate timescale for your honey to remain stable, and yet the honey inside is always edible even outside of those times, it’s just a “best before date”.  So, its worth keeping in mind that if you find a Manuka Honey offer where there is a short expiry date, you should be able to pick up some cracking bargains!