Processing Wheat Grass
PINES Processing From Seed to Shelf
The nutritional concentration of cereal grasses depends on where they are grown, when they are harvested, and how they are processed and stored. PINES follows all the quality control safeguards that 75 years of research have proved essential for maximum nutritional concentration. Please see our book for more on this, including a reference list that in many cases leads you to the original sources of research:
The 1st safeguard is the environment in which our products are grown. PINES wheat grass, barley grass, and alfalfa are organically grown without herbicides or pesticides in rich Kansas soil. This fertile, mineral abundant farmland is located in the perfect climate for cereal grasses and alfalfa. Kansas ranks number one in the production of wheat and other cereal grains, and that’s no accident. Cereal grasses planted in the fall and grown through the Kansas winter are nutritionally superior to products grown elsewhere because the grasses grow slowly and develop naturally in an ideal climate. Just as cactus grows well in the desert, wheat grass grows well in Kansas.
The 2nd safeguard is harvesting just prior to jointing. Seventy-five years of research clearly establishes the fact that the highest levels of nutrients occur during this period. PINES harvests just once a year during this critical window of opportunity.
The 3rd safeguard is direct cutting so that the leaves never touch the ground and are moved quickly (within an hour) to our dehydrators.
The 4th safeguard is our specially designed, low temperature dehydrator which helps keep nutrient levels at maximum levels. (The dehydrator is a triple bypass drum dehydrator, through which the grass leaves fly for 2-3 seconds, so that the cell temperature of the leaf never goes above 106F, to help make sure we retain maximum levels of heat sensitive nutrients like betacarotene and enzymes).
The 5th safeguard is the extensive in-house quality control testing on every 1,000 kilogram batch. Samples are also sent to an independent lab for verification.
The 6th safeguard is our storage of the cereal grasses and alfalfa in pellets, greatly decreasing the surface area to reduce oxidation and loss of nutrients.
The 7th safeguard is our nitrogen filled pharmaceutical grade "supersacks" that we use for storage, further limiting oxidation and nutrient loss.
The 8th safeguard is our frozen storage where the nutrient content of the products remains virtually unchanged indefinitely.
The 9th safeguard is the removal of product from frozen storage only as needed to package our bottles. It is at this point that we grind the pellets into powder with our low temperature grinder, and then either bottle the powder, or move it to the tableting room.
The 10th safeguard is our high compression, low temperature process which makes tablets that are 98% pure.
The 11th safeguard is our in-house and indpendent lab-testing of the finished product to ensure the safest, most nutritious wheat grass, barley grass, and alfalfa possible.
And in the 12th safeguard, we nitrogen pack all our products in amber glass to restrict the effects of light and oxygen, once again to keep nutrient levels maximized.
PINES follows these safeguards to ensure that these highly concentrated foods arrive in your home nearly as fresh and nutritious as the day they were harvested.
