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Leatherwood Honey.
The world’s finest honey.

Exclusive to Tasmania’s west coast, hidden deep in the forest. The leatherwood tree may be difficult to access, but the delicious rewards are well worth the trouble.

Leatherwood honey, produced in Tasmania, Australia, comes from the nectar of the native Leatherwood tree (Eucryphia lucida). This honey is internationally acclaimed for its quality and uniqueness, often featured in gourmet markets worldwide. Its global recognition promotes Tasmania as a source of premium natural foods.

Culturally significant in Tasmania, Leatherwood honey production is a tradition passed down through generations, preserving traditional beekeeping practices and fostering local pride. Tasmanian beekeepers prioritise sustainability and the health of their bees, with honey production occurring in remote, pristine areas like the Tasmanian Wilderness World Heritage Area (WHA), ensuring a natural habitat and sustainable practices.

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Unique Origin

Leatherwood honey is exclusive to Tasmania due to the island’s unique geography and climate.

The Eucryphia lucida tree thrives in Tasmania’s pristine, rugged western wilderness, making this honey a truly unique product.

Distinctive Flavour and Aroma

Leatherwood honey is renowned for its distinctive flavour and aroma, characterised by a bold, complex taste with floral and spicy undertones, creamy texture, and rich, buttery finish.

This unique profile makes it a sought-after ingredient in gourmet cooking and specialty foods.

Health Benefits

Leatherwood honey offers numerous health benefits. Rich in antioxidants, it helps combat oxidative stress and may reduce chronic disease risk.

Its antibacterial properties aid in soothing sore throats and it also contains vitamins, minerals and amino acids that support overall health.

Culinary Uses

Leatherwood honey’s unique flavour makes it a versatile ingredient. It can be used as a natural sweetener in teas, baked goods, desserts. It pairs well with cheeses, meats, and salad dressings.

Chefs and food enthusiasts use it to add a distinctive twist to both sweet and savoury dishes.

TERROIR

Eucryphia lucida is endemic to Tasmania and grows in the temperate rainforests at sub-alpine to low altitudes and thrives in a cool to warm, wet environment. It is a tall tree and produces prolific white blossoms, 2 – 3 cm in diameter, which have a high nectar flow for 4 – 6 weeks in late summer producing best when between 100 and 150 years of age. It provides viability to the Tasmanian honey industry as the consistency and volume of nectar flow is awesome.

Tasmania’s temperate rainforest, climate, topography and soil types impart unique flavour characteristics to Leatherwood honey with subtle regional and seasonal variations noticeable.

FLAVOUR

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PRODUCTION

Leatherwood honey production in Tasmania is a distinctive and intricate process, shaped by the unique characteristics of the Leatherwood tree and the island’s environment.

The Eucryphia lucida flourishes in the ancient temperate rainforests of Tasmania’s west coast, particularly within the Franklin-Gordon Wild Rivers National Park and World Heritage Area (WHA). 

These trees bloom from late December to March, offering a short yet crucial window for honey production.

Beekeepers place hives deep within remote rainforests to access the Leatherwood flowers. This often involves transporting hives by truck a task that demands meticulous planning and significant effort due to the challenging terrain.

Throughout the flowering season, beekeepers regularly visit their hives to harvest honey, facing unpredictable weather and difficult access. Adverse weather conditions can affect the availability and quantity of Eucryphia lucida nectar, adding further complexity to the process.

Tasmania’s pristine environment ensures that Leatherwood honey remains free from pollutants and chemicals, enhancing its unique flavour and purity.

To preserve its natural qualities, Leatherwood honey is extracted using traditional methods. The process involves removing frames from the hives, uncapping the honeycomb cells, and using centrifuges to spin out the honey without damaging the comb structure.

The honey is minimally processed to retain its natural enzymes, flavours, and health benefits.

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RECIPES

Honey Pork Roast

INGREDIENTS

  • 1.5kg boned leg of pork
  • Pepper marinade
  • 4 cup honey
  • 3 tablespoons medium dry sherry
  • 6 tablespoons light soy sauce
  • 3 tablespoons hoisin sauce

DIRECTIONS

  1. Remove the rind from pork, lay out flat, cut into 4 equal size strips, slash each 3 or 4 times diagonally and season with pepper.
  2. Combine marinade ingredients, pour over pork, cover and refrigerate overnight.
  3. Place meat on a rack in a baking dish 3cm filled with water and bake at 190°c for 1⁄41 hours, brushing occasionally with marinade.
  4. Serve hot or cold.

Serves 4.

Honeyed Fish

INGREDIENTS

  • 500g thick fish fillets e.g. ling or gem
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice
  • 1 clove of garlic, crushed
  • 1⁄4 teaspoon dried marjoram leaves
  • 2 teaspoons teriyaki sauce
  • 1 tablespoon honey, melted
  • 4 zucchini, sliced thickly
  • 125g baby mushrooms
  • 1red capsicum cut into square pieces

DIRECTIONS

  1. Cut fish into lengths, approximately 2.5cm wide, and place in a bowl. Combine lemon juice, garlic, marjoram, teriyaki sauce and honey, pour over fish and cover. Marinate 2 hours.
  2. Thread fish and vegetables on skewers and grill for 3 minutes on each side, basting with remaining marinade. Serve with rice.

Honey Beef Casserole with Coriander Dumplings

INGREDIENTS

  • 1 kg chuck or blade bone steak, cut into cubes
  • 2 tablespoons plain flour
  • 2 teaspoons curry powder
  • 1 teaspoon salt
  • 1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tablespoons oil
  • 8 small pickling onions, peeled
  • 2 cloves garlic, crushed
  • 2 cups beef stock
  • 2 tablespoons honey
  • 2 teaspoons mustard
  • 250g button mushrooms
  • 2 tablespoons oil, extra
  • 1cup self raising flour
  • 1teaspoon salt
  • 90g shredded suet
  • 2 tablespoons coriander or parsley chopped
  • 1⁄4 cup buttermilk

DIRECTIONS

  1. Toss the meat in flour, curry powder, salt and pepper.
  2. Heat oil in a large, heavy-based deep frypan or dutch oven. Add meat and flour mixture and fry until golden. Add onions, garlic, stock, honey and mustard. Cover and simmer for 2 hours.
  3. Sauté mushrooms in extra oil and add to casserole.
  4. Make dumplings by sifting flour and salt into a bowl. Add suet and coriander then stir in buttermilk to form a soft dough. (If the mixture is too dry add a little water). Divide into 6 balls, place on top of casserole and cook with the lid on for a further 30 minutes.

ABOUT

The Tasmanian Beekeepers Association represents beekeepers at local, state, and national levels, advancing Leatherwood honey production and industry development.

Managed by an Executive team of a President, Vice President, six Committee Members, and four affiliated bodies, they appoint a Secretary and Treasurer for administration and finance. The Executive meets about five times a year.

Leatherwood Honey Competition Terms & Conditions

By registering for this competition, you agree to these Terms and Conditions, which will at the time of your registration, become binding between you and us.

No salesperson, representative, or agent is authorised by us to give any guarantee, warranty, or representation in addition to, or contrary to these Terms and Conditions.

PROMOTER

The promoter is the Tasmanian Beekeepers Association.

ELIGIBILITY

The competition is only open to eligible entrants who are Australian residents.

Submits a registration application for this competition in accordance with these Terms and Conditions;

Enters this competition for himself or herself exclusively and not on behalf of any other person or group of persons;

Does not in any way tamper with the registration process for the competition.

PROMOTION PERIOD

The registration period is from 15 February 2025 to 30 March 2025.

COMPETITION

The image judged to be the most romantic will be the winner. The competition prize is a “Luxury Leatherwood Honey Pack”. There is a Luxury Leatherwood Honey Pack for 18yo and over entrants and a separate Luxury Leatherwood Honey Pack for under 18yo entrants.

HOW TO ENTER THE COMPETITION

To be eligible to enter the competition, the entrant must, during the promotion period:

Be an Australian resident photographed in the romantic moment during the promotion dates;

Register your details and the photo at #honeyandlove

Fill out the application form.

Upload your photo;

Submit your form to proceed.

Once you have submitted your application, you will receive an email notification confirming your entry has been submitted.

Your application will then be verified by a Tasmanian Beekeepers Association staff member.

You will go into the competition for the Luxury Leatherwood Honey Pack.

There is no fee charged to register for this competition other than the cost of you accessing the Internet.

Competition winners will be announced on the Tasmanian Beekeepers Association website and Facebook page.

GENERAL

No responsibility will be accepted for late, lost, or misdirected entries.

Failure to provide this information to the Promoter’s satisfaction may result in an invalid entry at the Promoter’s discretion.

Entries may only be submitted online and in the correct form provided and will not be accepted by the Promoter in any other form.

Any misrepresentation or fraudulent information supplied by an entrant disqualifies their entry.

The Promoter reserves the right, at any time, to verify the validity of entries and eligible entrants (including an eligible entrant’s identity and place of residence) and to disqualify any eligible entrant who submits a registration that is not in accordance with these Terms and Conditions or who tampers with the registration process. Suitable forms of verification are at the discretion of the Promoter. Errors and omissions may be accepted at the Promoter’s discretion.

The Promoter reserves the right to change, suspend, or cancel the competition at any time without notice.

The availability and the date for receiving delivery of some products may be impacted due to reasons outside the control of the Promoter, as a result, product availability and dates may shift or change without further notice at the discretion of the Promoter.

The Promoter reserves the right in its sole discretion to disqualify any individual who it has reason to believe has breached any of these terms and conditions, or engaged in any unlawful or other improper misconduct calculated to jeopardise the fair and proper conduct of the promotion.

The Promoter is not responsible for any technical malfunctions or problems with the internet or network congestion, including injury or damage to a participant’s or any other person’s computer related to participation in this Promotion and problems with transmission of entries and / or emails over the internet, acts in violation of these terms and conditions, acts in a disruptive manner, or acts with the intent to annoy, abuse, threaten, or harass any other person.

Any taxes which may be payable as a consequence of a Participant receiving a container of Leatherwood Honey are the sole responsibility of the eligible entrant or participant.

The Promoter’s decision is final and no correspondence will be entered into.

PERSONAL INFORMATION

The Promoter collects personal information in order to administer the promotion, the product warranty, for its own marketing purposes, and for market analysis. The Promoter may, for this purpose, disclose such information to third parties, including but not limited to agents, contractors, service partners, and providers, offer suppliers. 

The Promoter will not otherwise disclose your personal information unless you have been informed or you have consented or when the Promoter is otherwise permitted or authorised to do so by law. 

Participation in the program is conditional on providing this information. The Promoter may, for an indefinite period, unless otherwise advised, use the information for promotional, marketing, publicity, research, and profiling purposes, including sending electronic messages or telephoning the entrant. 

Entrants should direct any request to access, update, or correct information to the Promoter. The Promoter’s privacy policy contains information about how you can access or correct personal information held about you or make a complaint about a privacy breach of the Australian Privacy Principles.

LIABILITY

Nothing in these Terms and Conditions limits, excludes, or modifies or purports to limit, exclude, or modify the statutory consumer guarantees as provided under the Competition and Consumer Act, as well as any other implied warranties that are incapable of being excluded (Non-Excludable Guarantees). Except for any liability that cannot by law be excluded, including the Non-Excludable Guarantees, the Promoter (including its respective officers, employees, and agents) excludes all liability (including negligence), for any personal injury; or any loss or damage (including loss of opportunity); whether direct, indirect, special, or consequential, arising in any way out of the promotion.

GOVERNING LAWS

The laws of Tasmania, Australia, apply to this competition to the exclusion of any other law. Entrants submit to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts of Tasmania, Australia.