GROWING, PROCESSING, TRANSPORT, AND TESTING
Our mushrooms are proudly grown in China, one of the birthplaces of mushroom medicine. In the pristine mountains of China, we support local mushroom farmers who have dedicated themselves to the natural cultivation of mushrooms. We source our mushroom extracts from our friends at North American Mushroom Extracts (NAMMEX), which has worked for 20 years with their Chinese partners to produce products sustainably and without agricultural chemicals.
Grounded in tradition, every crop of mushrooms begins with strains that have been developed over centuries. Within greenhouses and shade-houses, these mushrooms are grown on specially selected materials like protein-enriched sawdust and hardwood logs. These substrates provide similar nutrients to what these mushrooms would be grown on in the wild, and can guarantee that optimal amounts of medicinal compounds will be present. Also similar to wild-grown mushrooms, these mushrooms have a constant flow of fresh air and fresh water as well as natural sunlight to ensure proper mushroom formation. Once fully ripened, the mushrooms are hand-harvested and then sun or air-dried in a dehydrator. Prior to processing, all mushrooms are tested for chemical drift and other contamination.
After drying and testing, the mushrooms continue their journey to NAMMEXs GMP-certified factories that process only mushrooms. All water that is used in processing is ultra-purified and filtered, and every step of the extraction process is closely monitored until the final extract is dried and packed in ultra-clean facilities.
Prior to leaving China, all mushroom extracts go through complete microbial testing for bacteria, yeast and mold, heavy metals, and pesticides, all of which exceed USP standards. Once the extracts have made it to North America, another round of testing is performed by qualified 3rd party labs, including another round of microbial testing for bacteria, yeast and mold as well as a heavy metal analysis and further pesticide testing. In addition to testing for purity, they are also tested for concentrations of medicinal compounds: Beta-glucan and ergosterol testing to ensure the presence of active compounds and fungal purity, respectively, and alpha glucan testing to ensure they are devoid of adulterants. Some mushroom extracts go through further testing for additional active components - reishi for triterpenes and cordyceps for cordycepin.
We are grateful for the extensive thought that NAMMEX has put into their growing, processing and testing, and trust in their process. This lets us do what we do best: formulate clinically-relevant formulas so that you get the right mushrooms, in the right amounts, to help practitioners heal patients with mushroom medicine.
QUALITY & TESTING SUMMARY
GROWING AND PROCESSING CONDITIONS
● Mushrooms grown in China on specially-selected materials like protein-enriched sawdust and hardwood logs in shade houses and greenhouses
● Mushrooms ensured access to free flow of air and water, and sunlight
● Processed in GMP-certified facility using ultra-purified and filtered water
Contaminant testing: pre-processing
● Heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury)
● Pesticides
● Yeast, mold, bacteria (including E. coli, coliform bacteria)
Contaminant testing: arrival in north america
● Heavy metals (arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury)
● Pesticides
● Yeast, mold, bacteria (including E. coli, coliform bacteria)
Constituent testing: arrival in north america
● Beta glucans (for presence of active compounds)
● Ergosterol (for fungal purity)
● Alpha glucans (for adulterants/substrate)
● Key components of individual mushrooms (e.g. triterpenes, cordycepin)
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