About the Taylor Pass Honey Co & our New Zealand Honey

Six years later, through hard work and ingenuity, raw honey from 500 hives was being sold for processing – but this was just the beginning.

In 2003 we began processing our own honey and our success in sourcing and producing high quality honey won the respect and trust of other beekeepers – soon they were asking us to process their honey too.

Over the years, our supply and honey processing capacity has grown through our knowledge, understanding and relationships. By 2009 we began our own distribution – selling honey directly to consumers throughout New Zealand, Europe and Asia – connecting us directly to the people who bought our product.

But at every step of our journey we have looked well beyond just growing bigger. We have always aimed to create a greater connection to the honey we produce, which is how we have managed to grow sustainably – ensuring an abundant supply of honey while maintaining consistent quality throughout.

Today, Taylor Pass Honey Co is one of the largest honey operations in the South Island. We bring the richness of our thriving community through our products and brand to the world.

Yet we can still tell you exactly where each jar comes from, right down to the site it was harvested from, in this unique and untouched land we call home.

Each and every one of our employees represent the spirit of our company. Honey is the fruition of our work, care and passion. Its integrity is key.

It’s work that comes naturally to all of us here at Taylor Pass: whether a beekeeper, scientist, technician, landowner or truck driver – every job matters. We actively encourage staff, suppliers and other key stakeholders to share their ideas – they are after all the foundation of the company.

We have strong relationships with the landowners who house our hives, and treat their properties with the respect and care we do our own. While caring for our hives and bees, we ensure the minimum amount of impact on their lives, land and businesses. Excellence and continuous improvement are applied across the business.

The way we see it, it’s all connected: This unique land, the bees and us – we have a responsibility to look after it all and, if we do, our communities will thrive; we will be able to hand a better world on to the next generation.

It is this land that’s at the heart of what we do. We can’t have healthy hives and bees without a healthy environment.

Taylor Pass lies at the heart of one of the most untouched and breathtaking places on earth. Here, nature is wild and abundant. The land is young, the water is fresh and the air is pure. This rugged terrain, surrounded by ocean so remote that no insect can fly across,

is the place we’re proud to call home: the South Island of New Zealand. It is here that you will find our hives – nestled amongst mountains and valleys where bees work the unique flora to produce honey with the signature flavours and properties of this land.

Marlborough

Taylor Pass, Marlborough is home base – our own hive of activity. The place where it all began and where the magic still happens today. It’s here our extraction plant, packaging plant, bulk storage and dispatch work together to bring the taste of the untouched south to market.

Marlborough is situated at the north-eastern tip of the South Island of New Zealand. It is blessed with a year round sunny climate and regularly records the highest sunshine hours for New Zealand. A perfect storm of nature and climate which combines to produce some of the finest quality Manuka Honey in the world.

There are three distinct sub regions to the Marlborough region:

The Marlborough Sounds is a collection of ancient sunken river valleys filled with the waters of the Pacific Ocean. Forested hills rise steeply from the sea around an intricate coastline of sheltered inlets and sandy bays. This area produces predominantly Manuka Honey.

The Nelson Lakes National Park is an enchanting alpine landscape of rugged peaks, forests and stunning glacial lakes. This area produces predominantly Honey Dew, Bush Honey and Manuka Honey.

Standing proud at the head of Marlborough’s Awatere Valley is Mount Tapuae-o-uenuku - the highest peak outside of New Zealand’s Main Divide. Gouged out by ancient glaciers, the Awatere Valley is the most geographically distinct sub-region with its snow-capped peaks, rolling hills and vast tussock landscapes. As a result, this area produces a large variety of honeys, including Clover, Blue Borage and Wild Flower.

Central Otago

Central Otago is a place of vivid beauty with its mountainous extremes, wilderness of glaciers and alpine lakes. This area produces the South Island’s finest quality export grade Clover Honey along with Blue Borage and Comb Honey.

South Westland

There are parts of the West Coast of the South Island where you can’t see another house, power line or sign of civilisation for miles around. This is the old country. Unsurpassed natural beauty - untouched beaches and rugged glacial river valleys. Everywhere you look, Westland rainforest tumbles across the landscape. This area produces predominantly Rata, Kamahi and Native Bush Honey.

The UMF Honey Trademark is an internationally recognized, verifiable quality trademark which is supported by research on Manuka honey (Leptospermum scoparium). The UMF® rating is a measure of the attributes and values that make up Manuka Honey, and assures purity & quality.

Oritain is a global leader in scientifically proving where food comes from. They exist to protect the reputations of their customers by identifying and mitigating well known risks in the food supply chain.

MPI is the gateway to government for people and businesses involved in agriculture, horticulture, forestry, animal welfare, aquaculture, biosecurity, fisheries and food safety. They act as a negotiator, a certifier, a facilitator, a regulator, an adviser and a partner to support and enhance New Zealand’s global reputation for primary products.

Betta Bees Research Limited runs New Zealand's leading Italian honeybee livestock improvement programme. They operate a science based, closed population breeding programme using traditional and molecular selection techniques

Apiculture New Zealand lobby and work with government on issues relating to maintaining bee health, enhancing biosecurity and improving research that will help to support New Zealand beekeepers.

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