Apiculture

New Zealand’s apiculture industry operates to some of the highest food safety and export standards in the world. As a Recognised Agency approved under the Animal Products Act 1999, we pride ourselves on delivering a highly personalised evaluation and verification services. 

With extensive knowledge of apiculture regulations and industry practice, we deliver efficient, reliable verification services that support your business, strengthen your reputation, and enable growth across domestic and international markets. Our verification team brings extensive honey production and auditing experience, supported by a dedicated key account manager. As a customer you can expect direct technical access to your highly skilled Approved Persons, to be viewed as an extension of your quality team.  

We work closely with beekeepers, packers, processors, and exporters to ensure compliance across the full apiculture supply chain, from extraction and processing through to finished product approval and export readiness. As a well‑connected team, we maintain strong service consistency and provide tailored support across the honey supply chain. 

Our Capabilities 

  • Risk Management Programmes (RMPs): Supporting robust food safety, traceability, and risk management 
  • National Programmes (NPs): Ensuring compliance with recognised domestic standards under the Food Act 2014. 
  • Certification of bee products for export: Meeting New Zealand legislative requirements and the expectations of overseas markets. 

Contact Us   Submit a Service Request Change RA to Hill Labs

Also need testing? 

Hill Labs brings together laboratory testing, inspection, and certification services under one organisation. This integrated model supports efficient compliance, clear communication, and reliable outcomes. 

Learn about our honey testing services

Latest Stories

Connecting with Farmers and Growers at Fieldays

We are looking forward to our 28th year at Fieldays this year, connecting with farmers, growers and industry professionals from across New Zealand. Events like Fieldays are a great opportunity for our team to get out from behind the desk, hear directly from the sector, and continue building strong relationships within the agricultural community.
  21 May 2026

A Record-breaking Day for Kiwifruit Samples

Hill Labs is a key service provider to Zespri and the kiwifruit industry, providing time-critical sampling and maturity testing services seven days a week. Zespri has strict maturity criteria that all orchards must pass before harvest to ensure consumers receive the best quality kiwifruit expected from the Zespri brand.
  21 May 2026

Introducing Dairy Commodity Product Testing and MALDI-TOF Identification

Customer needs continue to evolve - particularly across dairy commodity testing and microbiological identification - and over the past year, these topics have become increasingly common in conversations with our clients. In response, we have expanded our laboratory scope to include ISO reference method testing for dairy commodity products, alongside the introduction of MALDI-TOF identification technology.
  21 May 2026

What our customers have to say

"We've always found them to be responsive in getting results back and giving advice on problems we might be facing."

Andrew Hutchinson, Technical Manager, Turners & Growers

"We strongly recommend Hill Labs as a sound testing service provider to the honey industry."

Nick Walker, Technical Manager, Egmont Honey

"Their sample registration system has made things simple and seamless - collect, scan and send!"

Mathew Bannister, Compliance Manager, First Fresh New Zealand

Accreditations

As a New Zealand accredited laboratory by International Accreditation New Zealand (IANZ), Hill Labs' commitment to quality is tantamount to our overall operating philosophy. We pride ourselves on the quality of our work.