What is Propolis

Comvita Propolis, sourced from the pristine and remote forests, is gently processed and tested to ensure it’s of the highest quality. Comvita is a global natural health company committed to the development of innovative products, backed by ongoing investment in scientific research.

Through Comvita’s innovative science and technology, the PFL™ quality standard was introduced 15 years ago, ensuring their consumers receive a guaranteed amount of flavonoid and other phenolic compounds in every dose to assist their health outcome.

Where did Propolis come from?

Propolis comes from a Greek word meaning “to defend the city"" - Pro ""for"" or ""to defend” and polis ""city"".

Honeybees collect nectar and pollen for food. They also produce Propolis by collecting tree or plant resin, then mixing it with bee enzymes, and sometimes beeswax, to make a powerful antimicrobial.

Propolis is used by honeybees to line the inside of nest cavities, repair honey combs, seal small cracks from the hive, and reduce the size of the hive entrance. The most important of all, using the anti-bacterial, antiviral, and anti-fungal effects of Propolis to protect the colony.

Normally there are two ways to collect Propolis from bee colonies. One, by scraping Propolis from frames of the hive. Second, using Propolis traps to collect a higher yield of raw Propolis.

Propolis traps are essentially plastic screens with small holes put on top of the hive. This is to mimic cracks and creating breezes intended for honeybees to seal off the holes and filling the trap with Propolis.

Once the traps are covered with Propolis, bee keepers collect the traps and cools them down in a refrigerated condition. As the Propolis cools, it becomes harder, brittle and can be easily removed from the trap by flexing and brushing it using a scraping tool.

Annually Comvita source over 14 metric tonnes of high yielding raw Propolis direct from the hives in New Zealand and from around the world. They are all sent to Comvita's own extraction facility in Nelson, New Zealand. There, through specialised extraction processes, they purify and refine Propolis into a highly concentrated bulk ingredient that guarantees a minimum 15 percent bioflavonoid and other phenolic compounds in every batch.

The bulk ingredient is then formulated into many of Comvita’s Propolis products and uses the PFL™ (Propolis Flavonoid Level) system to guarantee all products are independently tested and has a verified level of flavonoid and other phenolic compounds in every dose. Propolis is also used in many other Comvita’s product categories such as the Lozenges, Winter Wellness Elixirs, Toothpaste, and many more new, innovative products to come in the future.

The Comvita® Propolis range is available to shop here.

Check out what our friends over at M2 say about Propolis, read more in M2 and M2Woman.