Manuka Honey MGO & UMF™: How Do They Compare?

Manuka Honey UMF™ vs. MGO: What’s The Difference?

Aside from its benefits for our wellbeing, one of the other reasons why Manuka honey is so sought after is due to its rarity; its flower is native in certain areas of New Zealand.

Manuka Honey MGO is simply a test that looks for the honey’s Methylglyoxal element and its potency. MGO can actually be added to honey after its cultivation, which does not offer any sort of guarantee that the Manuka honey you may be browsing is indeed genuine or as potent as it says it is.

UMF™ Manuka, on the other hand, is able to offer a more comprehensive insight into the chemical makeup of the honey, so you can feel confident about the quality of the product you’re buying.

The UMF™ standard measures 3 unique chemical compounds: Dihydroxyacetone (DHA), Leptosperin, and Methylglyoxal, otherwise known as MGO.

How the Manuka Honey Testing Systems Compare

When you’re looking at different products; whether they’re Manuka honey MGO or UMF™, you’ll come across the different numbering systems that portray the quality of the honey inside. Here is our comparison guide between UMF™ and MGO:

UMF™ 5+ has a minimum MGO 83

UMF™ 10+ has a minimum MGO 263

UMF™ 15+ has a minimum MGO 514

UMF™ 18+ has a minimum MGO 696

UMF™ 20+ has a minimum MGO 829

Why UMF™ is Better

Established by the Unique Manuka Factor Association (UMFHA) the UMF™ ratings system is designed to test the cultivated honey for its authenticity and potency, which gives assurances to retailers and customers alike that the product they’re buying is everything it says it is.

On the packaging of every UMF™ product, there will be two elements to look out for:

The ‘UMF’ lettering that indicates the honey has indeed been tested and passed by the UMFHA’s guidelines.

The number that represents the three chemical markers that are an indicator of the purity and the quality of the honey contained inside. The higher the number, the more potent the Manuka. UMF standard uses a more comprehensive testing method that measures 3 unique chemical compounds: Dihydroxyacetone (DHA), Leptosperin and Methylglyoxal, otherwise known as MGO.

UMF™ Manuka Honey from Comvita™

Here at Comvita™, our Manuka honey can be traced from our hives, located on the beautiful mountainous terrain of New Zealand’s North Island, right to their placement upon the shelf of a local store. Each step we take involves monitoring, checking and testing in order to ensure that our customers receive Manuka honey that is indeed natural and genuine.

Each batch of Comvita™ UMF™ Manuka is independently tested and certified for its quality, purity and authenticity by the UMFHA, who also undertake random sampling to ensure that the Manuka honey carrying their trademark is true to its label and able to be trusted.

Browse our range of UMF™ MANUKA HONEY to learn more about their possible benefits. Able to be included as part of a recipe, shaped to create skincare products to promote healing or even mixed with apple cider vinegar to create a daily ‘pick me up’ tonic, its versatility is yet another reason this gift from nature is so sought after.

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