Egmont Honey welcomes Tweeddale’s Honey to the family

Tweeddale’s has been looking after hives in the central North Island since 1945, and on Friday 18 September, we became the ones to carry that work forward. Here’s what it means for our team, our beekeepers and the future of genuine New Zealand Mānuka, and why we think the timing matters.

What it means

Going into the 2026/27 season, Egmont Honey will run more than 22,000 hives across our Taranaki and Taihape operations, quite possibly making us the largest beekeeping operation in the country.

Tweeddale’s is known for its distinctive green hives and for the depth of knowledge built up over generations of beekeeping in the region. After a difficult period for the business earlier this year, we’re glad to see it in good hands.

Why now

New Zealand’s beekeeping industry is under real pressure. Registered hive numbers have fallen from a peak of 918,000 in 2019 to under 490,000 today, a drop of close to half, and raw Mānuka prices have begun to rise again as supply has tightened.

“Timing is everything,” said James Annabell, CEO and Founder of Egmont Honey. “Supply is tightening across the industry at exactly the point demand for genuine New Zealand Mānuka is recovering. This is a key strategic acquisition that lets us supply our global retail partners sustainably and at scale, well into the future.”

That matters to us because Egmont Honey supplies retailers across Asia, Australia, the United Kingdom, Europe and North America. Securing more hives of our own means we can keep delivering genuine New Zealand Mānuka, at volume, for years to come.

Our beekeepers are still the backbone

This deal doesn’t change how we work with the beekeepers who supply us. Tweeddale’s hives cover only a portion of what we need each season, and Tweeddale’s was already our largest supplier.

“Our beekeeper suppliers are the backbone of this business,” said James. “This is about securing supply we already depended on, not replacing the people who built this company with us.”

The Tweeddale legacy continues

We’ve retained the Tweeddale’s field beekeeping team, and three members of the Tweeddale family are staying with the business.

“Don has built an extraordinary legacy over a lifetime in the industry, and that knowledge is not something you can buy or replace,” said James. “Long may the Tweeddale legacy in the Central North Island continue, now under Egmont Honey’s leadership and backed by our global network.”

What’s next

We have ambitious growth plans from here, and we’re excited about what Tweeddale’s brings to Egmont Honey. Thank you to our beekeepers, our retail partners and everyone who has supported us along the way. We’re just getting started.