Customer Reviews

Navitas Naturals Organic Goji Berries Himalayan Superfruit, 16-Ounce Pouch

5 star:		(57)
4 star:		(24)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(6)
1 star:		(26)

 

 

These berries are thought to be one of the one of the healthiest natural foods. There are many "stories" about the amazing benefits of these berries, many of which may be true, but a few verifiable facts about them (in dried form) follow:
1) High protein (about 12%), and are a complete protein. This is good for anybody, but particularly noteworthy to vegans, who choose not to get their protein from meats.
2) Decent fiber content (about 10%)
3) 18 (!!) amino acids
4) Like most sweet fruits, high in carbs and calories. 100 grams give you about 350-380 calories; roughly 3/4 from carbs and 1/4 from fat.
5) 6 vitamins, 8 amino acids, 11+ minerals (more in trace amounts)
6) Carotenoids, unsaturated fatty acids (this is a good thing), phytosterols (help lower cholesterol), and other healthy (or theoretically healthy but not particularly well researched) phytochemicals.

Enough with the technical jargon. These berries are great in cereal, smoothies (once hydrated), and tea. For tea, try this:
Put water, a small number of berries (6-15ish) and a teabag in your cup, microwave for about a minute per teacup (time varies), drop a small amount in your favorite tea along with the teabag and let the berries and tea steep for about 3 minutes.
This adds a subtle character to green tea (plus an unusual, tasty snack to do with a few of the sips). The flavor seems to blend well with chai and jasmine too. This may work differently for those who use creamer.

I recommend that you try a bag, keeping in mind that you may need to soak the berries in water/tea/whatever in order to make them soft, and see what you think. I have found they make a great addition to my usual cereal-only breakfast because they give me a much-needed protein boost.
If you like them quite a lot, you may want to take the time to look for a supply in a nearby Asian foods store. I have heard they can be purchased at a lower cost in bulk.

Having consumed Himalania Goji Berries for over one year, the Navitas Naturals Goji Berry is a great addition to the exotic food market. The Navitas Goji is harder and drier than the Himalania Goji, but the flavor is much sweeter and better tasting.

I love the fact that they're raw, vegan, sun-dried, and free of chemicals and pesticides! Goji berries are believed to strengthen the immune system, increase energy and reduce fatigue, and reduce the threat of free radicals (due to HIGH levels of antioxidants). Gojis have highest ORAC score to date! The ORAC scale is a standardized test used to measure the total antioxidant potency of foods and nutritional supplements.

Definitely, one of my favorite foods!

These supposedly have some of the highest levels of antioxidants of any food, which is why I bought them. But I really like the taste too. It's not too far off from a cross between a tomato and a strawberry, but a very little bit bitter at times.

Overall they taste great, though some kids might not like them due to the slight bitterness.

Edit: A few of these berries have a bit of mold on them. I would reduce my ranking by 1 star if I could.

To start with, I'm a big fan of goji berries. A friend recommended another brand that I faithfully purchased until it was no longer available. I just found out it's name and packaging have changed and I've placed my order! In the interim, I purchased the Navitas brand and have been disappointed. There were a number of green and dried leaves in the bag, which I never experienced with the "other" brand. I was about two-thirds of the way through my current bag when I discovered a couple of lovely little worms floating in my tea! FYI, I usually start my morning off with a big cup of hot tea, sweetened with gojis. After seeing the additional protein in my tea I decided to check the remaining contents of the bag. I emptied it out onto a white paper towel and discovered a number of more white worms. The bag has been kept sealed and stored in a dry, cool area so I blame the product not how it was stored. I'm very disappointed and will not be purchasing any more products from this company.

Order with CAUTION, while all organic foods have some issues with shelf life, these goji berries were more than 30% spotted with black spots of mold. Picking through these berries to discard the bad ones is a slow and tedious JOB. They cannot be returned and you are taking a chance of wasting your money.

I've been purchasing Goji berries for well over 15 years .... sorry to say, I have never purchased berries like this before.

I bought them here because of "Subscribe and Save," and was under the impression Navitas was a trustworthy brand. Perhaps I've been misinformed.

Was surprised when I removed the package from the box that the package sounded like DRY CEREAL. That's right, dry cereal.

I opened the package to find these hard little dry bits.

Now I know you can soak goji berries if you like, but I've never HAD to soak them to make them edible. They are usually drier than raisins, but chewey anyway. Not crisp like dry cereal.

Again, I don't consider myself a health food neophyte.

Know my raw foods, vegan foods, my unusual ways of getting nutrition. Was buying goji berries long before they became the "it" food of liberal aware consumer: bought them in the day when there was just a couple of small importers to the U.S. and I paid premium dollars from a raw food place in New York.

Have never, ever purchased goji berries like these before. The only time my goji berries were like this, and I am not exaggerating, was once when I found a package behind some cans that had been sitting for a couple of years. They were hard and dry and brittle.

Have never purchased like this before. Hope I never will.

Read the reviews ...


post-script: I see on the Navitas website that 1) "All berries are dried to a moisture content of 10-14% for a soft and chewy texture," and mine are NOT CHEWY; 2) "Navitas Naturals goji berries are grown in the fertile valleys of Ningxia Province, China," where you can, after the Bush Administration, slap on a USDA organic label, and still have a product full of toxic environmental pollutants. USDA now "accepts" other countries standards.

Please note, these are not Himalayan goji berries. I'm thinking the People's Republic has expanded this Tibetan crop for the American consumer.

My package is presumably good until July of 2012. I. Don't. Think. So.

I must be more strident than previously: do not purchase this product. I have a feeling Navitas has become another company that rides on the organic train with a minimum of real concern (no customer reviews on their website).

I find it interesting that folks who like the goji fruit and believe all the hype are so dismissive of the illnesses and reactions to it that a lot of folks have had. I thought they tasted fine, and didn't associate the waking up at 4am in the morning violently and painfully vomiting right away. I liked the taste and was eating a few before bed each night as I read. It's possible that the berries themselves cause it, but far more probable that they are contaminated. What I find interesting about the illness is that it wasn't immediate. I ate them for a lot of nights before waking up in agony and spending HOURS vomiting. I would surmise that those eating them after boiling/washing them are probably not having the same issues. The package said it was okay to eat as is, however. And the if you search goji online, there are A LOT of similar stories. I also thought it interesting that the "organic" might not actually be "organic" if they are supplied from China and thereabouts. There are NO organic farms out there. They still use DTT.

As other reviewers have noted, the berries do seem to make one feel more energized (and for this reason I would not eat them late at night before going to sleep). I have bought several brands of these berries and am pleased with the quality of this product (I also like the Navitas cacao powder). I took off one star for the rating because I am not sure if these berries are any better (in terms of growing and harvesting methods used and nutritional value) than those I found in San Francisco's Chinatown for a quarter of the price of this product. Overall, this is a high-quality product and I would recommend buying it from this site, especially if you do not live near a Chinatown.

According to the product label, these berries are wild crafted and sun dried in Tibet and are packaged in a resealable plastic pouch in California. They last for about one year at room temperature.

I put the Goji berries into my hot steel cut oat cereal to soften them a little bit. The knowledge of having something totally unprocessed makes it even more appealing. If you never had them, they taste like a combination of raisins and cranberries.

I have ordered these berries many times. Allthough they do not taste like any chocolate or any Hersheys bar, they are very nutritious and keep me energized. I have already ordered atleast 30 packs. I would recommend them for anyone.