Medicinal properties of Manuka honey recognised in IP law
The famous medicinal properties of Manuka honey have been recognised in intellectual property law. The Court of Appeal upheld the right of Apimed Medical Honey Ltd, a subsidiary of Comvita, to patent the use of the honey in wound dressings (Apimed Medical Honey Ltd v Brightwake Ltd [2012] EWCA Civ 5).
The honey has proven anti-microbial properties, but is liquid at room temperature therefore difficult to use for dressings. The patent was originally found to be invalid because of existing research demonstrating a way to use Manuka honey in a wound dressing. However, the court overturned this because the patent described a different way to use the honey.
Clive Thorne, partner at Reynolds Porter Chamberlain, which acted for Apimed, said: “This is a crucial result for the burgeoning exploitation of Manuka honey’s unique anti-bacterial properties in post-surgical wound dressing. The effective use of Manuka honey in the health sector is dependent on businesses like Comvita being able to license their product for other uses.”
