Raul Mateas-Orban says he's proud of the gold medal.
Raul Mateas-Orban says he's proud of the gold medal.
A Taranaki honey packing factory has won a national gold medal for its creamed manuka honey.
Tarata Honey owners Raul and his wife Eniko Mateas-Orban attended the Apiculture New Zealand National Honey Competition in Rotorua earlier this year.
Raul says they entered the company's Manuka Honey MG0 300+ in thecreamed honey medium colour category.
"We're very pleased to have won the gold medal in this category. We think it is a great recognition of our hard work and high quality standards in terms of manuka honey. Nevertheless it just goes to show that people really like our honey."
Raul and Eniko started their honey business in 2013, after moving to New Zealand from Europe in 2012 with their sons Eduard, 10, and Mark, 13.
"We love New Zealand. We're proud New Zealanders. Since we moved from Europe we worked in the New Zealand honey sector. Manuka honey was always in the focus of our attention here in New Zealand. We've built our honey extraction and packing plant in Tarata in 2018, and named our business Tarata Honey, as this lovely community has embraced us right from the beginning. We love this green paradise and are extremely proud to operate our business here."
He says Tarata Honey is a family business.
"The beekeeping, harvesting, extraction, processing, bottling, labelling and exporting is all done by our family. We control every aspect of putting our beautiful creamed manuka honey on the table."
Raul says the business runs a voluntary program that supports Toko and Stratford Primary schools with their beehives.
"We teach the students how to look after the bees and extract the honey. We also donate the jars, lids and cartons for their honey. We find great joy in helping the community and giving back as much as we can."
Tarata Honey's Manuka Honey MG0 300+ won the gold medal in the creamed honey medium colour category.
He says beekeeping runs in his blood.
"I'm a third-generation apiarist. When I was younger my grandfather taught me how to look after the bees. At Tarata Honey we pride ourselves with how we care for our bees in a manner that puts them as a top priority. There is a rather delicate balance that needs to be created between honey extracted and honey which is left in the hives for the bees to feed on and nourish their colonies."
He says the honey beekeepers leave behind after harvest is the key to the future harvest.
"This is the honey which nourishes the whole bee colony and ensures their survival during the wet Pacific winter."
He says the honey is purely made in Taranaki.
"It's 100 per cent pure New Zealand honey from the depths of the rolling Tarata hills and hidden forests. During the summer months our abundance of native manuka trees are full of small white flowers, and this is the time of year when the bees collect the nectar and make our most delicious raw manuka honey."
He says the manuka plant is well known for its unique properties and health benefits.
"All of our honey products are 100 per cent pure - nothing is added, just as nature intended it. This traceable manuka honey is independently tested."
Raul says he enjoys the taste of manuka honey.
"Our Gold Medal winner MGO300+ Tarata Manuka Honey has a smooth and silky texture, a creamy, almost fudge-like consistency. All our manuka honey batches are tested by an accredited laboratory. We encourage everyone to taste our local golden manuka honey
■ The Stratford Press has one jar of the medal-winning manuka honey to give away. To enter the draw email editor@stratfordpress.co.nz with your name, and contact details, or give the team a call at 06 969 4024. The winners will be drawn on November 24 and contacted later that day.
