Why Buy Alaska Grown?

As a consumer, when deciding between many different products and brands, do you consider where the ingredients come from? Are you concerned about their purity and whether they originate from ethical, sustainable sources? What about the country of origin, or where the final product is manufactured? Does it matter to you if it is certified organic, or how the land producing it is treated? How about the workers collecting or cultivating the ingredients?

If these principles matter to you, then you'll definitely want to choose Alaskan Rhodiola products over others that use Rhodiola root from uncertain sources. Grown on pristine Alaskan farms using ethically sourced plants, this is the freshest and purest Rhodiola Rosea in the world.

 Until recently, most of the world's supply of Rhodiola rosea came from wild fields in the mountains of Siberia and China. In the wild, these plants can take decades to grow, and often, what is sold as "Rhodiola" may actually be mixed with other rhodiola species. With increasing demand for Rhodiola rosea, these wild plants are threatened with extinction, resulting in them being listed as endangered by CITES (Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora) in November 2022.

In 2009, Dr. Petra Illig decided to experiment with growing Rhodiola Rosea in her front yard in Anchorage to see how it might fare on Alaska farms. To her delight, it did very well, and she convinced some intrepid farmers to cultivate it in their fields. While it was clear the plants were thriving, much had to be learned, as there is no instruction book on how to cultivate Rhodiola. Fortunately, the plants are extremely hardy and forgiving, as long as the winters are cold and the summers are not too hot or dry.

It takes Rhodiola Rosea at least five years in carefully tended fields to reach the maturity required for producing potent rosavin and salidroside levels, similar to those found in mature wild roots. The plants also require a lot of hand weeding, as they do not grow well when crowded by local weeds. The natural environment (niche) for Rhodiola Rosea is high in cold mountains, where other plants cannot grow. Therefore, when brought down to elevations where people live and farm, local weeds can easily crowd them out and stunt their root development. Of course, one cannot use any form of pesticide or herbicides, as the plants must remain uncontaminated by chemicals.

Alaskan farmers have now had over 15 years of experience and are proud to produce Rhodiola Rosea roots on par with wild plants. Since our farmers operate ethically and aim for organic practices, we also know that we are producing the highest quality product in a sustainable manner. And, best of all, it’s Alaska-grown and made in the USA!