Not all companies are the same and not all products are the same. You, the visitor, have probably stumbled upon this site while looking for possible health and cure related benefits from Goji Juice. As you can see from this site and the selection of articles on the internet that we link to, there are many different products that use the name Goji. And they are not all made by the same company. Freelife International is one of the major players that are most known for the Himalayan Goji Juice and the GoChi Juice.

You probably stumbled on this site while looking into what is behind some of the claims you may have heard or have been told about Goji products that are derived from or created with the Goji Berry (Lycium Barbarum). If you have learned of these claims in relation to products from Freelife International you should be aware that distributors with the company are not allowed to make exaggerated health or medical claims and that Freelife puts in great effort to prevent this from taking place.

Here are several things you would want to educate yourself on, taken from Freelife’s own policies:

As a FreeLife Marketing Executive (dstributor):

1. I will conduct myself with integrity and will make the Golden Rule the cornerstone on which I build my business.

2. I will support and advocate the Policies & Procedures which are designed to make FreeLife a company to last many generations. I will also abide by local, state, and federal laws that govern my independent business.

3. I will convey the FreeLife opportunity to prospects with honesty and integrity and I will not make false, misleading, or inaccurate income claims. I will encourage all prospects to review FreeLife’s Annual Income Statistics Chart before joining FreeLife.

4. I will train, motivate, support, and encourage my entire Organization to the best of my ability. I will be an advocate for the entire Company as a whole, even for those who are outside my Organization.

5. I will not encourage others to purchase product solely for the purpose of qualifying for commissions, bonuses, or advancement under the FreeLife Compensation Plan.

6. I will only use literature, sales aids, or Websites provided by FreeLife in marketing or selling FreeLife’s products. If I desire to develop my own advertisements, sales aids, or Websites or use such materials developed by others, I must first obtain the Company’s written approval before using them.

7. I will not make any therapeutic or medical claims in connection with the marketing or sale of any FreeLife International product. Not only do such claims violate FreeLife’s polices, but they also violate federal laws and regulations, including those administered by the food and drug regulatory agencies in your country.

8. I will not attempt to contact or respond to the media regarding FreeLife, its products or services, or my independent FreeLife business. All inquiries by any type of media must be immediately referred to FreeLife’s Marketing Department. This policy is designed to ensure that accurate and consistent information is provided to the public and to present a proper public image.

9. I will not record Company or other Marketing Executive events, speeches, or conference calls. This policy is designed to ensure that only the highest quality audios and videos enter the market place and thus represent FreeLife in the most professional manner possible.

10. I will uphold The FreeLife Way and share the importance of it with others.

FreeLife requires all distributors to agree in writing not to make inappropriate claims for the product. In particular, FreeLife’s Policies and Procedures provide that:

“No claims as to therapeutic or curative properties of any products offered by FreeLife may be made except those contained in official FreeLife literature. In particular, no Marketing Executive may make any claim that FreeLife products are useful in the cure, treatment, diagnosis, mitigation, or prevention of any diseases. This also includes personal testimonials attesting to the curative or disease treatment or prevention effects of FreeLife’s products. Such statements can be perceived as medical or drug claims. Not only do such claims violate FreeLife’s policies, but they also violate federal laws and regulations including those administered by the United States Food and Drug Administration and by Health Canada.”

FreeLife is very strict in its compliance procedures. It has a full time staff of five concentrating solely on compliance, including day-to-day involvement of its General Counsel. This involves reviewing all marketing materials, daily web sweeps to find online advertising violations, monitoring of meetings and conference calls, and disciplinary action where necessary. FreeLife’s Compliance department utilizes a set of Standard Operating Procedures to ensure consistency in its investigation and enforcement procedures.

Freelife has stated that they take their compliance obligations very seriously and have sent numerous letters to distributors who violate these policies, most of whom do it inadvertently. Freelife continues to follow up and enforce these policies with disciplinary actions that include termination if those who violate the polices refuse to stop the offending conduct. FreeLife’s commitment to ensuring that its distributors comply with the law and its policies is “not just lip service”.

Source: PubMed
This randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trial is the first study reported from outside China that has examined the general effects of the orally consumed goji berry, Lycium barbarum, as a standardized juice (GoChi(); FreeLife International LLC, Phoenix, AZ) to healthy adults for 14 days.

Methods: Based upon the medicinal properties of Lycium barbarum in traditional Asian medicine, we examined by questionnaire subjective ratings (0-5) of general feelings of well-being, neurologic/psychologic traits, gastrointestinal, musculoskeletal, and cardiovascular complaints as well as any adverse effects. Also, measures of body weight, body-mass index, blood pressure, pulse rate, and visual acuity were assessed before and after consuming 120 mL of GoChi/day or placebo control solution. Data were statistically analyzed for changes between day 1 and day 15.

Results: Significant differences between day 1 and day 15 were found in the GoChi group (N = 16) in increased ratings for energy level, athletic performance, quality of sleep, ease of awakening, ability to focus on activities, mental acuity, calmness, and feelings of health, contentment, and happiness. GoChi also significantly reduced fatigue and stress, and improved regularity of gastrointestinal function. In contrast, the placebo group (N = 18) showed only two significant changes (heartburn and happiness). No significant changes in musculoskeletal or cardiovascular complaints were observed in either group. All parametric data (body weight, etc.) were not significantly different between groups or between day 1 and day 15 for either group.

Conclusions: These results clearly indicate that daily consumption of GoChi for 14 days increases subjective feelings of general well-being, and improves neurologic/psychologic performance and gastrointestinal functions. The data strongly suggest that further research is indicated to confirm and extend knowledge of the potential effects of Lycium barbarum upon human health.

From the University of California in Irvine: Prior to the implementation of a the clinical study, A Randomized, Double-blind, Placebo-controlled, Clinical Study of the General Effects of a Standardized Lycium barbarum (Goji) Juice, GoChi , the protocol and experimental design were extensively reviewed by the authors as well as other researchers from UC Irvine and Cornell University. The study was conducted according to standards required for randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled clinical trials. The study has been published in the Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine (JACM), a peer-reviewed medical journal, insuring that this study was subjected to rigorous review by JACM’s panel of independent scientific reviewers. The Editors of JACM judged that the study was worthy of publication.

The study protocol included the use of FreeLife employees as participants, which is a common practice in clinical research, same as Universities often utilize students and staff as test subjects. The study methodology and experimental design (randomized, double-blind placebo controlled) controlled for possible bias with regards to the reported treatment effects.

Source : CBC Expose on Goji Juice and Freelife
“Thousands of Canadians are drinking a new product made from a ‘miraculous berry’, that suggests powerful benefits. Wendy Mesley reveals the real deal behind the new craze and travels to Hollywood to pose questions to the Canadian-born nutritional guru involved.”

CBC Canada has aired a hard hitting 26 minute expose on Goji Juice and Earl Mindell. Earl Mindell, as the (now former - ed) spokesperson for Freelife, a company selling Goji Juice, can be compared with Neil Solomon, a (former?) speaker and so-called expert on Tahitian Noni Juice. Earl is not a real doctor. Neil no longer can call himself one. Earl preaches Goji to make a buck. Neil preached Noni to make a buck. The only difference is that Neil Solomon admitted, in writing, that he sexually abused many of his patients when he was a doctor.

Update (January 2008): Earl Mindell is no longer affiliated with Freelife International.

In the interest of equal time and in fairness, Freelife has responded to the broadcast with a number of things that are worth mentioning. When Freelife learned that CBC was going to do a story on Goji Juice they offered, several times, in writing and by phone, that the CBC team would come over to visit the Freelife offices and interview the corporate team on camera so that CBC could get both sides of the story. According to Freelife, CBC flatly refused the repeated and open invitation and as such consider that CBC had no interest in hearing Freelife’s side as it would have decreased the sensationalism of CBC’s broadcast.

The CBC broadcast had two main components to it. First that exaggerated medical claims were being made by our distributors and Earl Mindell regarding the health benefits of Goji Juice. And secondly that there was no nutritional value in Himalayan Goji Juice.

Freelife’s Policies and Procedures strictly forbid exaggerated medical claims and while Freelife admits that “at times our Customers and even Earl Mindell did become overzealous with the results they received and saw in others and unwittingly made unauthorized medical claims”.

Even before the CBC show aired, Freelife had a compliance program in place but have since ramped up the compliance efforts to “reduce unauthorized medical claims as much as possible”. Freelife believes their compliance program is as good or better than any nutritional company in North America. FreeLife requires all distributors to agree in writing not to make inappropriate claims for the product. In particular, FreeLife’s Policies and Procedures provide that:

“No claims as to therapeutic or curative properties of any products offered by FreeLife may be made except those contained in official FreeLife literature. In particular, no Marketing Executive may make any claim that FreeLife products are useful in the cure, treatment, diagnosis, mitigation, or prevention of any diseases. This also includes personal testimonials attesting to the curative or disease treatment or prevention effects of FreeLife’s products. Such statements can be perceived as medical or drug claims. Not only do such claims violate FreeLife’s policies, but they also violate federal laws and regulations including those administered by the United States Food and Drug Administration and by Health Canada.”

You can find the complete Policies and Procedures here.

“The FreeLife Way,” which serves as a code of ethics for Marketing Executives is provided to every distributor in their initial business kit, is regularly reprinted in our monthly newsletter, “Living the FreeLife” and is available here. Amongst other items, The FreeLife Way provides that distributors agree as follows:

“I will not make any therapeutic or medical claims in connection with the marketing or sale of any FreeLife International product. Not only do such claims violate FreeLife’s polices, but they also violate federal laws and regulations, including those administered by the food and drug regulatory agencies in your country.”

FreeLife is very strict in its compliance procedures. It has a full time staff of five concentrating solely on compliance, including day-to-day involvement of its General Counsel. This involves reviewing all marketing materials, daily web sweeps to find online advertising violations, monitoring of meetings and conference calls, and disciplinary action where necessary. FreeLife’s Compliance department utilizes a set of Standard Operating Procedures to ensure consistency in its investigation and enforcement procedures.

Freelife has stated that they take their compliance obligations very seriously and have sent numerous letters to distributors who violate these policies, most of whom do it inadvertently. Freelife continues to follow up and enforce these policies with disciplinary actions that include termination if those who violate the polices refuse to stop the offending conduct. FreeLife’s commitment to ensuring that its distributors comply with the law and its policies is “not just lip service”.

Regarding the health benefits of Himalayan Goji Juice, and according to Freelife, the reporter “just got it plain wrong”. Prior to the program being aired, FreeLife informed the CBC that the primary source of the product’s health benefits are the LBPs (Lycium Barbarum Polysaccharides) and offered to assist them in testing for this active compound. They never responded to Freelife nor tested for the LBPs. Instead, Wendy Mesley tested the product for protein and three specific vitamins that Freelife state right on the product label are not included in the product. Further, none of the Freelife literature claims that their product contains these nutrients. Instead of testing for the active ingredient, the LBPs; she tested for several nutrients that Freelife disclose are not in their product. Based on her test results, she reported that Goji Juice has very little nutritional value. According to Freelife this is “misleading and ludicrous”. Needless to say, Freelife’s view of this broadcast is that Wendy did not do her homework nor take the opportunity to learn more when it was offered and as such that she has no interest in providing the truth to viewers, but simply wanted a sensational story for better ratings.

In addition to Freelife’s first published study they have completed two more human clinical studies that have been submitted to peer-reviewed scientific journals for publication. This link will take you to the science section on FreeLife’s website for abstracts of these two studies which indicate significant improvements in the immune system and the enhancement of the body’s own endogenous antioxidants.

There has also been a substantial increase in the number of published scientific studies of the key ingredient in Freelife’s Goji/GoChi Juice, Lycium Barbarum. These can be found on the National Institutes of Health website PubMed. The vast majority of these studies focus on the benefits derived from the Lycium Barbarum Polysaccharides (”LBP”).

FreeLife also has an independent Scientific Advisory Board, which includes professors from Cornell; Tufts, University of Chicago; University of California at Irvine; University of Queensland; and University of Sydney, as well as FreeLife’s Chief Scientific Officer, Haru Amagase.

In a funny attempt to improve search results on “goji juice scam”, Gary Holdon has written an article titles “Are There Goji Juice Scams Out There?”. It doesn’t present you the information about the scam, but instead it is intended to lead people to sales activities where any goji juice other than the one he sells is a “scam”. The original article, are-there-goji-juice-scams-out-there-tx300391, is aimed at leading people who want to know more about the goji juice scams to even more false information that acts as a smokescreen to confuse people into believing there’s a layer of scam within the scam itself. Unfortunately for Gary, the attempt at improving search results on “goji juice scam” doesn’t work all that well the way he tried it.

Just like many Noni Juice dealers have done, Goji Juice dealers (and there are many different companies selling a juice that has the name Goji in it) will often use tricks like “google bombing” whereby they present the search engine with different words than the actual page contains in the hopes of misleading the individuals using the search results. Go ahead and give it a try, go do some searches on goji scam and you will find many results that lead to sales gateways and funnels. You will notice that the text in the description on the search results page is not found on the page you eventually end up on. That’s how desperate these dealers are.

Additional Information: Mr. Gary Holden has no relationship with Freelife International and its Goji products. Instead there appears to be a relation to goji-4-all.com and houseofnutrition.com that involves online shopping carts for a product called “DescriptionLife Time Goji Juice”. Be aware that there are many different competing “Goji Juices” and reports from all over the internet show that different people with different preferences or affiliations will always claim that one juice is better than the other juices.

Source: The Cancer Blog
New Zealand health authorities are investigating what they feel to be extravagant health claims by companies trying to sell goji juice as a cure for cancer. In New Zealand, that kind of health claim is illegal. That kind of health claim is illegal in the United States as well.

Note that this article by the Cancer Blog is a generic report and does not involve Freelife or its Marketing Executives (that’s dealers and distributors in simple terms). Unfortunately for Freelife, a major manufacturer of Goji products, any bad publicity regarding Goji in general reflects badly on all the companies involved in products derived from or created with Goji Berries. Freelife makes great effort to educate their distributors regarding their obligations.

The Policies and Procedures, Marketing Executive Agreement, The FreeLife Way, Public Meeting Agreements signed by event hosts and Royal Ambassadors event hosts, all clearly state that no medical claims or drug claims may be made about FreeLife products, directly or in the form of testimonials:

I will not make any therapeutic or medical claims in connection with the marketing or sale of any FreeLife International product. Not only do such claims violate FreeLife’s polices, but they also violate federal laws and regulations, including those administered by the food and drug regulatory agencies in your country.

FreeLife has also worked with the Direct Selling Association of Australia, of which FreeLife is member, who teamed up with the Complementary Healthcare Council of Australia to produce a flyer regarding juice claims. This was a cooperative effort that was created for distribution to Australian and New Zealand marketers, distributors and retailers to educate them on the legalities of distributing juice products.

Source: Passion for Health
In January 2007, Earl Mindell was lambasted by CBC Marketplace in a fascinating interview and exposé for allegedy taking advantage of sick folks to make huge profits selling goji juice. His business empire is massive. His goji meetings are like religious events with Mindell as “master.” His product—Freelife “Himalayan” Goji Juice is actually made from berries not grown in the Himalayas! His reasoning is that the “unique” polysaccharide profile is the same as the Himalayan sort. Hmmm I don’t like that kind of thing. Either it’s Himalayan or it aint. Mindell claims that only his juice has the exact profile of these “master” molecules “There simply is no other product on the market like it.” He also claims he’s going to close half the hospitals!

To use Freelife (a pyramid marketed product with top sellers making $170,000 - $1,700,000 a year according to freelife), expect to shell out $50 per bottle or about $250 for a months supply. I feel sad. This smacks of exploiting sick people. Can folks not get the benefit of goji berries that doesn’t involve a $250 per month cost? The Marketplace program said that many of his claims are false. In lab tests, his juice contained virtually no B or E vitamins and no beta carotene. The lab tests also found his “unique” product to be similar to other juices. Mindell responded by citing 76 peer reviewed studies that support his health claims. He’s written a book on Goji that lists 34 health benefits—even that it prevents cancer.

Dr. Steven Zegar, who researches natural health products for cancer treatment at McMaster University has reviewed many of the goji studies. He says Mindell has extrapolated bits of these studies and is using them out of context. The polysaccharides could have health benefits but there’s little proof to back up the hype. Dr Bradlow of Hackensack University in New Jersey said “It inhibited the growth of cells in a dish… a little dish like this isn’t the same as a person.”

“There’s absolutely no proof it would have that effect on a human… there’s no justification for encouraging people to take this as an anti-cancer drug… it’s misrepresentation of the facts… it’s unbelievable how many unscrupulous souls there are out there, trying to pedal an unproven product… there’s lots of single studies that turned out to be one shot wonders.”

In Mindell’s defense, I reckon goji berries do have cancer preventing qualities. Plant food in general have been shown in many studies to have anti-cancer properties and antioxidants are known to “mop up” free radicals which can cause DNA damage. Since goji is a highly nutritious berry, it’s fair to say that it has anti-cancer properties. Unfortunately for Mindell, you just can’t say it without proof. Also, his juice is lacking many of the health benefits of the berry itself. Surely if he really wanted the best for people, he would be recommending the berries and not his extremely expensive juice? Also in Mindell’s defense, it’s mainly the polysaccharides that he’s promoting in his juice. But again I have to ask why not just eat the berry and get the other benefits as well at a much reduced cost?

In the Marketplace interview, he urges folks to go to www.pubmed.gov and do a search for “Lycium Barbarum” (the latin name for goji berries). Well I did just that–83 results of studies relating to goji or its extracts (to put this into perspective, I did a search on pubmed for broccoli that came up with 5416 studies). So, a few more have been added since the Marketplace interview. Having a quick flick through, three things sprung to mind. Firstly, not many people will have a clue how to interpret these studies. To pick one purely at random… “Effect of lycium barbarum polysaccharide on human hepatoma QGY7703 cells: inhibition of proliferation and induction of apoptosis.” Brain freeze!!

I’m sure you’re dying to know what the outcome of that particular study was eh? Well, “The study suggests that the induction of cell cycle arrest and the increase of intracellular calcium in apoptotic system may participate in the antiproliferative activity of LBP in QGY7703 cells.” Phew, I’m glad we cleared that up!

Secondly, a lot of these studies are just not relevant to the claims made by Mindell… stuff like “How to extract the polysaccharides” and so on. Thirdly, most of these studies were done in China. Call me a cynic but the Chinese would have a lot to gain from goji acquiring a reputation for healing cancer and other illnesses.

Source: Stock E-News
CBC MarketPlace, a television program that protects consumers against untrue claims made about products, recently broadcast a consumer alert on a product known as “Himalayan Goji Juice”.

In this amazing television special, CBC MarketPlace conducted actual lab tests on the Himalayan Goji (Go Chi, GoChi) Juice and discovered that the juice was in fact not really different than any other juice and that it certainly wouldn’t make a person any healthier than if they drank Cranberry Juice, or any other juice for that matter. “The program revealed that Dr. Mindell’s claims about the Himalayan Goji Juice were false, thus issuing what many would say would be a Consumer Alert about the product and its false claims.”

In this amazing Consumer Alert, CBC MarketPlace reveals the actual lab test results on what many were lead to believe would be the magic cure for their ailments, including cancer. Unfortunately the CBC MarketPlace lab tests proved that this juice really has no better healing powers than any other juice one might buy in the grocery store.

CBC MarketPlace proved that Dr. Mindell’s claims were in fact not true and could not be supported by lab tests of his Himalyan Goji Juice. Lab tests revealed that the “powerful ingredients” Mindell claimed were in the Goji Juice (Go Chi, GoChi) were not even in it and that these ingredients were in the raw Goji Berry and were not in the Goji Juice itself, marketed as “Himalayan Goji Juice”. The program reported numerous untrue statements made by Dr. Howard Mindell and about Himalayan Goji (Go Chi, GoChi) Juice. Himalayan Goji Juice is sold for almost $50 per bottle and is being marketed as a cure for a variety of ailments and terminal diseases, including cancer. After taking the juice back to the lab, CBC MarketPlace reported that the Himalyan Goji Juice was really no different than Cranberry Juice or any other juice.

Hidden cameras were placed inside a number of the FreeLife business presentations and corporate rally’s and CBC MarketPlace revealed that numerous untru claims were made by Dr. Mindell and Freelife Distributors as to the healing powers of the Himalayan Goji Juice. Lab tests proved the juice to no different than any other juice. “CBC MarketPlace is a program that makes every effort to broadcast what they call consumer alerts on products and companies that are making untrue claims and giving innocent people false hopes of being cured or healed from their ailments”.

Source: Edmonton Journal
The advertising described him — with incredible chutzpah — as “Widely regarded as the world’s No. 1 nutritionist.” The product here was goji juice, which was promoted as: “The biggest discovery in nutrition in the last 40 years!”

The expert emphatically stated that the many benefits of goji juice had been firmly established in clinical studies on humans. But I was unable to find a single study in the medical literature that reported a clinical trial showing a positive impact on health or disease. Supplements are also marketed by way of infomercials on TV and as junk mail. The level of dishonesty here is at least as bad as the above cases.

In brief, the people carrying out the marketing of supplements often use scientific evidence the way a drunk uses a lamppost: more for support than illumination. Clearly, there is widespread fraud. This also poses a risk to the health of consumers as some consumers may choose supplements of no value over conventional medical treatment. In addition, many supplements, especially herbs, pose a risk of side-effects.

Source: Thai Visa

“We all know what MLM means, it means for a start that the product is always more expensive than selling through other means. There are always the uplines making money, and going on romantic trips to the West Indies or Mexico, or somewhere that sounds great. Do you think the owner of the company pays for this? or the salesperson? No. No. No. Its the customer, YOU, that pays. As regards to Goji Juice, there are a couple of different brands knocking around, but the main one is MLM, they want you to sell their product, to all your friends, relatives, workmates, it gets to the stage where everybody you know pretend that they are not at home when you walk down the street.”

The post on ThaiVista embodies a common view of what MLM and network marketing is often about. Granted that the pyramid structures, recruitment systems, and the business model itself has been debated ad infinitum and there have been, are, and in the future no doubt will be, companies that use the MLM business model in ways that is ordinarily viewed as “a scam”. It is worth noting that Freelife International is not what is often considered a typical pyramid scheme because there are provisions and procedures that “well-run, long-standing MLM companies like FreeLife” put in place to protect its distributors and customers:

• Sell a product of real value. Many companies using the MLM business model are often referred to as “recruiting MLM’s” and are illegal in several countries because there is no actual product involved. This is the kind of situation where the term pyramid scam usually applies.
• Freelife offers a 90-day, 100% money back guarantee. “If you do not like FreeLife’s product, return it within 90 days of purchase and you will get a 100% refund, even if the bottle is empty!”
• One year, 90% buy back. If you join FreeLife and you decide it is not for you even after 90 days, just let Freelife know that you wish to cancel. Freelife will “refund your money less a 10% handling fee for all resalable product and sales aids you purchased within one year of your decision to cancel”. The stock market is certainly not offering this on any investment losses.
• Freelife does not have a requirement to purchase product when you join. There is absolutely no product purchase tied to becoming a distributor.
• No inventory loading. Freelife has the ability to “drop ship” product to customers, there is no need for a distributor to have a garage full of product. FreeLife’s Policies prohibit both inventory loading and encouraging others to inventory load.
• Freelife has no payment for recruiting. Unless a product is sold, no commission is earned.
• Freelife’s Marketing Executives (distributors) are prohibited from making exaggerated income claims. Furthermore, FreeLife publishes its annual income statistics for all to see, which provides income information from the lowest level position all the way up to Presidential Royal Ambassador. Here is one from 2006.
• Freelife’s Ray Faltinsky served on the Board of Directors for the Direct Selling Association for two years and President, Kevin Fournier, was just recently elected onto the board in June of 08.