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7 tips To Finding The Very Best Dried Goji berries
If you are confused by the conflicting information out there about who sells the finest dried Goji berries also known as Wolf berries then this maybe just what your looking for. I started this website with one goal in mind. I wanted to provide you with the best information possible regarding this amazing little berry called Goji. Sadly I have found that I can't find a juice with a consistent source of polysaccharides What is the answer then? Goji berries? I found the same misinformation out there for the berries as I did with the juice. This guide will help you find the wolfberry company selling the very best dried Goji berries.
Goji Berry Or WolfberryWolfberry is the more an English name for this berry. Since the botanical name is lycium barbarum berries, the Latin name for this plant it is thought that it was close to the Greek word for wolf ..Lycos. Goji is a marketing name that caught on because the Chinese pronounce it goo-chee-zee, in Mandarin.Tibet Or ChinaYou may of seen the ads "Only Real Tibetan goji berries". Around the world there are only 30,000 tons of goji berries grown every year. Of that only .03% are grown in Tibet alone. So for as many companies claiming they are selling berries only from Tibet may be stretching the truth a little bit. The truth is the Lycium Barbarum species did originate in Tibet and was transplanted to other areas of China, India and Mongolia many hundreds of years ago and thats how they use that claim.The most nutrients Goji berries in the world are found in many areas of China. Berries grown in Ningxia Province seem to hold the highest quality berries. Along with Inner Mongolia and Xinjiang Province . They grow along the Yellow River known as the "Goji Belt".
Wildcrafted or FarmedWhen I think of wildcrafted I think of heading off into the mountains with my bucket and picking wild berries until my bucket is full then traveling for miles to find a buyer and going miles back up the mountain to get another bucket full. If you were to buy wildcrafted any kind of wild berries near your home they would be very expensive right?I imagine there are some that are wildcrafted but how would you know and are you willing to pay 10 times the price plantations charge. Truth is most dried goji berries sold in the U.S. are from plantations. They have been developed to be very cost efficient and easily inspected for purity.
Organic Or NotThe Goji plant is one of the hardest plants on earth. It can take extreme heat (102F) and extreme cold (-16F) So in my way of thinking, why would a Goji farmer want to add to his cost of producing berries by adding chemicals, pesticides and fertilizer if the plant does just fine without it.More than likely they are organic if they were grown in the Ningxia region but if you want to be sure look for the green certificate issued by the Chinese government. (A green certificate is a certificate issued by the Chinese government Certified Organic Program - similar to the USDA National Organic Program. Green Certificates, however, are not recognized by the USDA at this time.) You might be surprised to find almost all companies claim to have this so I don't put very much value on it.
Sun-Dried Or NotAt this time you cannot buy goji in the fresh form except maybe in some Chinese markets in the U.S.. The closest you can get is cold pressed and cold bottles juice and I have found only one company that can provide that. Whats left is Sun dried Goji berries. So what's the big deal about sun-dried? Is there any other kind of dry? There is another dry and its a form that you won't see in ads and thats oven drying. Although most companies would prefer to sun-dry their berries for reasons of cost. There are times when sun-drying just isn't very practical. If its a rainy fall in the goji belt, sun-dried berries would have to be dried inside barns and sheds employing fans and possibly heat to continue the drying process when the weather is bad for drying. Another way is ovens. Berries are placed in trays one tray on top of each other with a space in between and heat is fan force with a temperature of 90F. If this is a concern for you then choose a company that promises their berries are air dried (less harm to the nutrients)
Selecting A High Grade BerryCommercial berries of any kind are graded. The higher quality grades receives the higher prices and lowest quality gets the lowest price, its no different with dried Goji berries. There are 4 grades sold out of China.Super King Special Grade A The Super grade berries sell roughly 40% more than the Grade A. Larger in size with more flesh and less seeds, these berries come from the oldest more established bushes and vines. In size comparison to the Grade A's, there are 480 per 50 grams and 240 for Super. Not only the difference in size it's thought that berries from the older more established plants may be higher in nutrients.
How Dry Is DryBelieve it or not you even need to consider how dry are your berries when you buy them. If you plan to eat them soon after you buy them then you would think that you wouldn't need to worry about it. But you do. They are only harvested over about a 6 week period in the fall. Dried goji berries are sold year round.A bag you buy in the fall maybe a year old! This is not a problem if the moisture content is 11 - 13% which ensures a long shelf life. If it is higher then the berry starts to ferment. Many companies get around this problem by using sulfur dioxide to slow down fermentation. Although they say they don't, choose a company that states the moisture content and says it doesn't use sulfur dioxide. Berries with under 13% moisture do not ferment even after 2 years on the shelf.
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