December 24, 2003

Comvita Takes Remaining 50% Of Medical Honey Company Api-Med

AX-listed natural health products company Comvita announced today it has bought all the remaining shares in Cambridge-based Api-Med Medical Honey Limited.

One of Api-Med’s UK customers recently received the European CE mark certification for its wound dressing products that will allow manuka honey dressings to be marketed directly to hospitals and clinics.
 
Comvita Chairman Bill Bracks in announcing full acquisition of Api-Med Honey Limited says the original 50% shareholding purchased in September was largely undertaken to secure the intellectual property for manufacturing wound dressings that are infused with high UMF manuka honey.

“The purchase of the remaining 50% of the company is a practical move that allows Comvita to add value to the company through entering new ethical medical markets where New Zealand’s indigenous manuka honey has been embraced as a leading edge method of treating wounds and serious ulcers.  It is a major step for the company by taking a position at the medical end of the health continuum.

Comvita’s chief executive Graeme Boyd says the use of honey products in medical situations opens exciting new market potential for Comvita and New Zealand plus opening new economic opportunities for beekeepers and landowners. 

Boyd says uses such as wound dressings add value to a natural resource and offer huge growth potential in international markets.

Api-Med is involved in clinical trials with the Auckland University’s Clinical Trials Unit beginning in January. 

Graeme Boyd says there is a large body of research now available on the antibacterial activity of manuka honey and of its rapid healing characteristics, spearheaded by Dr Peter Molan of Waikato University. 

He says the clinical trials will provide the final level of certainty needed to take the products in to the medical field.

“We have long recognised there is solid revenue potential in the medical area for natural products companies that have strong research capabilities.  We have been steadily working toward that goal of entering that market.”

The Api-Med purchase is in line with the strategic focus of Comvita to be a leading player in wellness products through a genuine and resourced innovation programme.  The purchase and clinical trials are part of a planned process of growth for the company.

End

August 15, 2003

Bali Bomb Blast Victims Among Those To Benefit From NZ Wound Care Product

Victims of last October’s terrorist bombings in Bali are among a number of Balinese benefiting from a New Zealand honey-based wound care product used to treat burns and skin infections.

Appropriately known as WoundCare, samples of the product were recently donated to the Bali Community Health Trust by complementary health products market leader Comvita New Zealand.

The Bali Community Health Trust reports its voluntary workers in Bali are achieving excellent results in the treatment of burns and skin infections using WoundCare. The WoundCare samples were taken to Bali by new Trust volunteer Sue Cowie, from Auckland. Cowie gave them to a local healthcare provider who is providing ongoing treatment for bomb blast patients.

Trust project manager Annette Culpan, speaking from Bali this week, described WoundCare as a fantastic product for healing wounds in Bali’s tropical conditions.

“The WoundCare has been absolutely brilliant,” according to Culpan. “We have seen some wonderful results using it to treat the burns and wounds of a diverse range of (Balinese) patients including bomb blast victims.

“One patient, simply known as Isaak, had his hand severely burnt in the bombings. Since WoundCare was applied, he has made tremendous progress and has increased mobility in his hand.

“I also witnessed the treatment of serious wounds suffered by a young disabled man injured in a hit and run accident involving a Western tourist. His wounds were almost completely healed within three days of treatment using WoundCare.”

Culpan, who is serving one year in Bali as the recipient of part of the Vodafone New Zealand Foundation World of Difference Programme, says since arriving in Bali early in May she has been shocked at how different the island paradise of Bali is since the bombings.

“The trickle down effect is particularly apparent in the remote villages where loss of income via tourism has further exacerbated these already impoverished areas. Primary healthcare has been hit hardest of all and the feeling in rural Bali is desperate.

“In one village, five out of seven hotels have closed down and the situation is unlikely to change in the foreseeable future. This loss of income has impacted most significantly on primary health, providing strong confirmation that the Trust’s work here in Bali is now more critical than ever.”

After the bombings, the Bali Community Health Trust sent three volunteers to Bali to assist in the care of local bombing victims. They took with them 150 boxes of donated product and worked with bomb blast patients for almost two months.

Encouraged by the positive feedback, the Trust is sending more donated WoundCare samples to Bali. The samples are going with Trust founders Julia West and Sue Cotton who are returning to continue their work in the rural villages and revisit the patients they treated after last October’s bombings.

Annette Culpan says the critical situation in Bali makes the support of companies like Comvita all the more important. She adds the Trust’s work simply would not happen without this type of support.

Comvita’s resident natural health consultant, Dr Caroline Davy, says the positive reports about the effectiveness of WoundCare come as no surprise.

“New Zealand’s manuka honey, which is the basis of our WoundCare 18+ product, is gaining increasing acceptance among health professionals, here and overseas, as an effective alternative to conventional medical treatment of wounds,” says Dr Davy.

“I know of several major UK hospitals which now routinely use manuka honey for wound dressings, and here (in New Zealand) it’s widely used in aged care hospitals. Manuka Honey contains UMF (Unique Manuka Factor) which is a special antibacterial acitivity not found in other honeys.”

Dr Davy claims one of manuka honey’s most important roles in wound care may prove to be of help in the treatment of wounds infected with antibiotic-resistant bacteria. She points to laboratory testing which shows its success in combating certain bacterial infection.

Comvita’s national sales manager Dave Burnett, who with chairman Bill Bracks spearheaded the company’s Bali initiative, says further WoundCare donations to the Bali Community Health trust are likely.

“We are delighted our donation has been so well received by the Trust and it’s nice to see people less fortunate than ourselves benefiting from a natural product from this part of the world,” says Burnett.

For more information on the Trust’s work in Bali see www.balihealthtrust.com or mail correspondence and donations to PO Box 49, Beachlands, Auckland.

END