Goji Berries (Lycium Barbarum), also known as Wolfberries, are native to China and have been used medicinally for hundreds of years. The first written reference to goji berries was in Shen Nong Ben Cao Jung, written around 200 BC. It has been used traditionally for strengthening the body, keeping fit, prolonging life, and improving liver and kidney function, among other things. The flower, seed, leaf and root bark are also used medicinally. The berries are also used in Chinese cooking. L. Barbarum is also native to Europe, but no known consumption history exists. Another species, L. Chinese is another species in China, Nepal, Pakistan, Thailand and Europe.
Gojis are an excellent source of Vitamin C, Fiber, Iron, Vitamin A, Zinc, Selenium, phytochemicals and antioxidants.
The main growing areas in China are Ningxia and Xinjiang, with smaller amounts grown in Inner Mongolia, Qinghai, Gansu, Shaanxi, Shanxi and Hubei. Our goji berries come primarily from Ningxia and Qinghai (located on the Tibetan Plateau) and are harvested at the peak of maturity. Our gojis come in various sizes, named “count” or “ct” ( = number of berries per 50 g).
This is best defined as a range:
Large: 180ct – 220ct
Medium 280ct – 380ct
Small: 500ct – 700ct
We test every lot of organic berries we receive to ensure that they are free of pesticides and meet our microbiological and many other standards. Our conventional goji are very low in pesticides and have less than 10 ppm of naturally occurring SO2.
We also ensure the moisture content is between 12-14% so the berries are moist and chewy rather than hard and dry. Once removed from their packaging, they soften up a little, so having them a bit harder/dryer initially is desirable.
Freshly picked
We have been working with the same producer in China for over a decade to ensure that we maintain consistent quality, flavour and colour. We visit them regularly to make sure that they adhere to our standards. They have been growing goji berries since 1998 and are China’s largest producer and exporter of organic gojis. In addition to being EU Organic, Kosher and Halal, they are the only goji supplier in China with a social audit and a licence to sell their gojis in Chinese pharmacies. Other goji exporters and importers often shop around for the best price and end up with varying consistency and quality.
Our organic gojis are from Delingha, a grassland by Kelu Lake at an altitude of 3200m, located in Haixi, Mongolia and Tibet autonomous prefecture Qinghai, northwest China. Delingha means golden world in Mongolia. This is an important area for organic gojis to achieve organic standards because of its particular cold and dry climate and the high altitude that significantly reduces the risk of insects, naturally reducing the need for any pesticide or other toxicity.
Bringing Gojis From the Field
Believe it or not, China is one of the leading countries for organic products, with a 2.1 million-hectare organic planting base. The growing base is expanding by 10% annually. The annual production of 200,000 tons of goji is grown on 1.6 million hectares.
The berries grow on shrubs, with an average height of 1.5m; some can be as high as 3m. Ours are processed as follows in our state-of-the-art facility:
First of all, mature and tender fresh berries are hand-picked, and only the best quality gojis are selected. Next, they are run through an air separator to remove any foreign material. They then go through a metal detector to remove any metal fragments that might be present. Once that is complete, they are spread out on trays and oven-dried until the moisture content reaches about 14%.
Traditionally, goji berries were sun-dried, and some companies still promote the fact that their gojis are sun-dried. There are a couple of reasons that we don’t do this with our gojis. First, it takes about one week in the sun for gojis to dry. This means the gojis are sitting outside, in the sun for a week, and there is a risk of contamination by insects, pathogens or other foreign material blown in by the wind, etc. In addition, because goji berries are different sizes, there is no way to achieve a uniform moisture content. This means that some gojis will be dry and hard, and some will be too moist and could get mouldy. Our gojis are dried in a sterile environment to prevent contamination from insects or bacteria, and the moisture content is controlled to about 12-14%.
After drying, the Gojis are colour selected to remove any residual foreign material, stems, leaves and other impurities. They then go through another metal detector to ensure food safety. They are then packed in poly-lined cartons – until they finally reach you!
