Rainforest Foods Barley Grass Powder new Zeeland

Although mankind has used Barley grain for millennia, only in the early Twentieth Century did we discover the exceptional nutritional richness of its young, leafy growth (cotyledons). Abundant in chlorophyll, protein, vitamins and minerals, it is a superb, broad-spectrum food to support a healthy diet.  

A signature component of barley is the green pigment chlorophyll, which allows plants to convert light into energy via photosynthesis. Chlorophyll is high in Magnesium. Barley grass is rich in protein, which has 18 of the 22 amino acids – including all of the eight essential amino acids that the body can’t make for itself. Barley grass is thus an excellent source of protein for vegans, who often lack it in their diets. The vitamin content of Barley grass is also significant. It provides 30 times more Vitamin B1 than cows’ milk, plus Vitamin B2, Vitamin B6, Vitamin B9, Vitamin B12 and antioxidant Vitamin C.

Barley grass is an excellent natural source of minerals. As well as the Magnesium in its chlorophyll, it contains Calcium, Copper, Iron, Manganese, Phosphorus, and Potassium. These are all essential to our diets, and can be lacking in modern, processed foods.

Production
We source our Barley grass from an organic farm in Canterbury, New Zealand. It is harvested while the plant is still young, below 30 cm tall. Within 1-6 hours of harvest the Barley grass is transported to an organically certified dehydrating company, where the moisture content is reduced to approximately 4% by air dryers. The drying process takes between 20 and 25 minutes. Samples are taken hourly for daily quality assurance testing. Once dried, the powder is milled, to particles first of approximately 150 – 200 microns, then 50 microns. It is then packaged, awaiting transport to the UK.

Organic Certification
Rainforest Foods Barley grass capsules are certified by the Soil Association, one of a handful of organic certification bodies in the UK. These are regulated in their turn by DEFRA (Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs). The role of the Soil Association is to ensure that all foods sold as organic are definably so. It does this by auditing every stage of the supply chain, through growth, export and processing. Soil Association certification – indicated by the Soil Association logo and the EU organic leaf symbol on our packaging – is a guarantee that our customers are purchasing an organic product. All organically-certified products must also carry a certification code on their packaging. For UK companies such as Rainforest Foods this has the format GB-ORG-XX, XX indicating the certifying body. If this is not present, a product is not organic. The Soil Association code on our products is GB-ORG-05.

Benefits of Barley Grass:

                    - 100% organic Barley
                    - certified product
                    - suitables for vegans