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Goji berry seed oil is the cold-pressed plant oil from the small seeds inside the goji berry, the fruit of Lycium barbarum. The shrub is native to Asia and is grown mainly in China; the berries are dried or pressed for juice, the seeds are separated during that processing and pressed for oil. On the label the ingredient reads Lycium Barbarum Seed Oil, and there is no second ingredient.
Many people arrive here after searching for 'goji berry seed oil benefits'. This page keeps to what can be checked: what is on the label, where the seed comes from, how the oil looks, smells and feels, and how to use it. About what the oil does in or under the skin we make no claim. The label states no figures for any component and there is no analysis of this batch, so this text contains none.
Goji berry seed oil in brief
- Ingredient: Lycium Barbarum Seed Oil, exactly as printed on the label, and the only ingredient.
- Plant: the goji berry shrub, Lycium barbarum; the oil comes from the seeds, not from the flesh of the berry.
- Method: cold-pressed, as the label states.
- Colour and scent: pale golden, with a faintly nutty scent that fades after applying.
- Texture: thin and light; it sinks in quickly and leaves no greasy film.
- Use: the face, the neck and the eye contour, a serum or blend of your own, and dry hair ends; external use only.
- Sizes: 30 ml and 100 ml, singly or in packs of three or six.
- Storage: cool, dark and dry, with the bottle closed.
What is goji berry seed oil, and what is it not?
It is a pale golden, thin plant oil with a faintly nutty scent, pressed cold from the seed. It is not an extract of the fruit: a goji extract is usually made from the berry and is water- or glycerine-based, while the seed oil is a fatty oil. The two behave completely differently in a formula and are not interchangeable. It is also not the dried berry you find in a food shop; the oil is a cosmetic product and is not meant to be swallowed.
Why is goji berry seed oil expensive?
Because of the yield. A goji berry holds only a handful of tiny seeds, and pressing them cold gives very little oil per kilo of seed. A great many berries go into one small bottle. That is the whole explanation; it is not a rare plant but a low-yield seed, the same story as with kiwi seed oil.
What does it look, smell and feel like?
The oil is pale golden and thin. It spreads easily and sinks in quickly without leaving a greasy layer; two or three drops cover a face. The scent is faintly nutty and gone soon after applying. If you like the feel of grapeseed oil or kiwi seed oil, this one sits in the same category: light, quick, and comfortable under a cream or make-up.
What do people use goji berry seed oil for?
- On the face and neck. Two or three drops on cleansed, slightly damp skin, alone in the evening or under a day cream in the morning.
- Around the eyes. One drop shared between both ring fingers and tapped along the bone under the eye, away from the lid and the lash line.
- In a serum or facial oil blend of your own. As the thin oil that makes a heavier oil easier to spread.
- On hair ends. A single drop on dry ends, for a little shine and a smoother feel.
How do you use it on the face?
Cleanse, pat the skin dry and leave it slightly damp. Put two or three drops in your palm, warm them briefly between your hands and press the oil onto cheeks, forehead, nose and chin rather than rubbing it in. In the evening it goes on as the last step; in the morning it goes under a day cream, or you stir a single drop into the portion of cream in your hand. Wait a few minutes before foundation. Three drops is about 0.15 ml, so a 30 ml bottle used once a day lasts about two hundred applications, well over half a year.
How do you use it around the eyes?
Take one drop, share it between the tips of both ring fingers and tap it along the bone under the eye, from the nose outwards. Keep away from the moving eyelid and the lash line; oil creeps a little on its own and anything too close ends up in the eye and stings. If that happens, rinse with lukewarm water. One drop is enough for both eyes together.
Can you mix it with other oils?
Yes. It is a good thinner for a heavier oil: mix it with a richer oil when you want some of the substance without the weight. Start half and half and adjust. In a serum of your own, keep an essential oil to no more than two drops per tablespoon of base oil, mix in a small dark glass bottle, and finish the blend within a few months. Do not add water to an oil blend.
How should it be stored?
Cool, dark and dry, with the bottle closed. Thin seed oils turn faster than butters or waxy oils such as jojoba, so keep the bottle away from light and heat, out of the bathroom if you can, and buy a size you will finish within a few months. A sharp or paint-like smell means the oil has turned and should not be used.
What to keep in mind
Goji berry seed oil is for external use only; it is a cosmetic oil and not for the kitchen, even though the berry itself is sold as food. Before the first use, put one drop on the inside of your wrist and wait a day. Avoid contact with the eyes and rinse with lukewarm water if it happens. Keep out of reach of children.
Which bottle: 30 ml or 100 ml?
For the face and the eye contour alone, 30 ml lasts for months and is empty before the oil gets old; for most people that is the right size. For blending or for use on the body, 100 ml is cheaper per millilitre. Both bottles hold the same oil and can be ordered singly or in packs of three or six.
Where does Aza Natural's goji berry seed oil come from?
We sell goji berry seed oil cold-pressed and pure, without added fragrance or other ingredients, in 30 ml and 100 ml bottles. Other single-ingredient oils are in the pure oils section, and two other light seed oils for the face are harakeke seed oil and amaranth oil.
