A landscape view of the Manuka Biotic farm

HOW WE MAKE IT

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The Mānuka essential oil comes from the leaves of the Mānuka plant. Nothing is wasted in our whole process and every part of the plant is used – plus the by-products can be used.

A man cutting back trees on a mānuka farm

CUT

Around 1 ton of Mānuka leaf is cut during each harvest. We harvest around 2 – 3 days per week. We move around the property allowing each section to regrow naturally.

Tim Murray-Leslie working at his mānuka farm with a colleague

PACKED

The Mānuka foliage is then packed into large stainless steel bins that are then taken to the distillation unit. The foliage is compacted as much as possible as this gives a higher yield of Mānuka oil.

Large metal drums containing cut mānuka trees and flowers

DISTILLATION

The bins are then lowered into the distillation unit where it operates at 100 degrees C and steams the Mānuka oil out of the leaves of the plant.

Two men looking at the control board in a mānuka oil production facility

ORGANIC MĀNUKA OIL

From 1 tonne of foliage, we can produce between 2 to 3 litres of pure Mānuka oil. The oil is then separated, filtered and rested before being measured and bottled.

A close up of distilled mānuka oil dripping into a glass beaker

We take pride in every drop of certified organic Mānuka oil produced. All of our facilities are operated with care and maintained to ensure we are producing the best quality oil we can.

Nothing is wasted!

Once the Mānuka oil has been steam distilled, the leftover foliage, leaves and branches make excellent gardening mulch. The water used during the steam distillation process is recycled back into the system or stored for use in a range of secondary products.