Schisandra
Schisandra is the dried ripe berry of Schisandra chinensis, a woody vine native to northeastern China, Korea and the Russian Far East, where it is cultivated and wild harvested. The red berries are dried whole, then sold as whole fruit, powder, or water or water-alcohol extracts, often standardized to lignans such as schisandrin. They are also used in drinks for their sour, salty and bitter taste.
Suppliers sell different products under the same name. Specify the one you need.
Dried fruit for decoctions, teas and further extraction.
Dried berries, seeds included, milled to a powder.
Extract with a declared percentage of total lignans or schisandrins by HPLC.
Berries from certified organic cultivation or certified wild collection.
Compare each result with your own specification when the lot arrives.
Keep berries, powder and extract sealed in lined bags or drums, cool, dry and out of direct light. Powders and dry extracts pick up moisture and cake once opened, so reseal containers and limit time open on the production floor. Shelf life or a retest date comes from the supplier's specification, and the marker assay is usually repeated at retest.
Lignan content varies with species, origin and harvest, so check each lot's assay against your specification. Record the species named on the COA, origin and supplier lot, and rotate stock first-expiry-first-out.
Facts from regulators and standards bodies, each linked to its source.
Health Canada's Traditional Chinese Medicine Ingredients monograph lists Schisandra chinensis under the Chinese name wu wei zi and the pharmaceutical name Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis (the fruit).
Source: webprod.hc-sc.gc.ca (opens in a new tab)The EU Novel Food status Catalogue entry for Schisandra chinensis (POL-NF-00686) concerns only the fruits and young leaves, listing the fruits (berries) as not novel in food and young boiled leaves as not novel in food supplements.
Source: ec.europa.eu (opens in a new tab)This is general information, not regulatory advice. Status differs by country and by how the ingredient is used, so check the rules for your product and market.
Manufacturers and distributors whose own websites say they sell it.
Manufacturer · San Jose, CA
Draco Natural Products is a San Jose, California, maker of powdered botanical and mushroom extracts, including certified organic and traditional Chinese herb extracts, with an office in Shanghai.
Manufacturer · Mollet del Vallès, Spain
Euromed is a Spanish producer of standardized botanical extracts for pharmaceutical, supplement, food and cosmetic companies, with plants near Barcelona and in Murcia. It is part of the Dermapharm Group.
Suppliers are in alphabetical order and none pays to appear. Each claim is checked against the supplier’s own website on the date shown. Ask for the specification sheet and a recent COA before you order, and confirm details with the supplier.
Common forms include whole dried berries, berry powder, standardized extract and organic. Ask each supplier for the specification sheet of the exact grade they quote.
Expect identity, lignan assay (HPLC), heavy metals, microbiology, pesticide residues and physical tests, each with its method, specification and result for that lot.
Keep berries, powder and extract sealed in lined bags or drums, cool, dry and out of direct light. Powders and dry extracts pick up moisture and cake once opened, so reseal containers and limit time open on the production floor. Shelf life or a retest date comes from the supplier's specification, and the marker assay is usually repeated at retest.
Health Canada's Traditional Chinese Medicine Ingredients monograph lists Schisandra chinensis under the Chinese name wu wei zi and the pharmaceutical name Fructus Schisandrae Chinensis (the fruit). The EU Novel Food status Catalogue entry for Schisandra chinensis (POL-NF-00686) concerns only the fruits and young leaves, listing the fruits (berries) as not novel in food and young boiled leaves as not novel in food supplements.
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