Officials from the New Zealand Food Safety Authority (NZFSA) have announced a modified standard for the maximum content of the poison tutin in honey. The limit is currently at 2mg per kilo in honey and 0.1mg in comb honey, but is set to be relaxed.

Rigid controls had been placed on the neurotoxin last year after contaminated honeycomb poisoned 22 people in late 2008 in Whangamata. However, the NZFSA has revised the compliance guide to match that of Food Standards Australia New Zealand.

A review of the 2008 standard found that testing extracted honey was still the most effective method of managing the tutin problem. A spokeswoman for the NZFSA insisted that beekeepers would not be left to manage the tutin problem on their own.

Tutin is a naturally-ocurring neurotoxin that is produced by the tutu bush. It enters honey when bees forage on honey dew excreted by passion vine hopper insects that have fed on the tutu bush.

Comb honey is a higher-risk product because tutin distribution in the comb can be variable undiluted, as a result of honey pooling.

Ingesting tutin in honey can lead to the following symptoms: vomiting, delirium, giddiness, increased excitability, violent convulsions, stupor and coma.