May 23, 2023
Mānuka honey producers stung by trademark finding
A Māori intellectual property lawyer says a fight by Māori honey producers to reserve the term mānuka honey for certified New Zealand-produced honey will continue despite the latest sting.
The New Zealand Intellectual Property Office has sided with Australian producers that the term mānuka can’t be trademarked.
Kahui Legal managing partner Lynell Tuffery Huria says the Mānuka Charitable Trust is considering whether to appeal or try another tack.
“Our argument is that mānuka is a Māori word, it has whakapapa here in Aotearoa and therefore it is indicative of honey that is produced from mānuka trees here in Aotearoa New Zealand,” she says.
Ms Huria says the decision shows the Intellectual Property Office is not protecting Māori indigenous taonga and needs to be changed in line with the recommendations of the Waitangi Tribunal WAI 262 Report.