Key points
- The number in a goji quote (180, 280, 350, 580) is a count per 50 g — fewer berries means larger fruit. It measures size, nothing else.
- “Super”, “premium” and “Grade A” are sales vocabulary, not standards. Two suppliers can use the same word for different material.
- Size does not tell you moisture, sugar, colour, defect rate, residue status or origin. It is one line of a specification, not a summary of it.
- Write the method with the number: sample mass, whether stems and broken fruit count, and the tolerance.
- Match the size to the use — tea and infusion, snacking, bakery inclusion and milling all want different counts.
Every goji quotation carries a number: 180, 250, 280, 350, 580. It is a count of how many berries make up 50 grams, so a lower number means bigger fruit.
That part is genuinely useful, and it is the one thing in this category that two suppliers will usually agree on. The word printed next to it — “super”, “premium”, “Grade A” — is not. We have seen the same grade word attached to materially different berries often enough to treat it as marketing until a number and a method arrive.
The current national reference
China’s official standards registry lists GB/T 18672-2014, Wolfberry, as current. It fully replaced GB/T 18672-2002, was implemented in 2014 and was reviewed in 2021 with a conclusion that it remained effective. (Official GB/T 18672-2014 record)
A 2023 peer-reviewed Ningxia field study explicitly quotes these GB/T 18672-2014 particle-count thresholds:
| Chinese category | Practical English rendering | Berries per 50 g |
|---|---|---|
| 特优 | Top grade | no more than 280 |
| 特级 | Special grade | no more than 370 |
| 甲级 | Grade A | no more than 580 |
The paper used the rule to classify its experimental samples; it defines particle count as the number of berries in 50 g. (2023 study, discussion of Figure 3d)
Because the public official registry does not expose the full licensed standard as searchable text, a buyer using the national standard contractually should obtain and review the authorized current copy. The table above is deliberately limited to the bands directly confirmed in the academic quotation; this guide does not reconstruct unverified lower grades from old supplier pages.
National grade, local schedule and supplier size are not the same thing
In 2019, the Zhongning County Goji Industry Development Service Center published local market price guidance. Its schedule used 280 for 特优, 370 for 特级 and 550, not 580, for 甲级. (Zhongning 2019 guidance)
This does not prove that one source is wrong. The local document was a commercial pricing guide and may set a tighter buying point than the broad national reference. It demonstrates why a quotation must name its system.
Treat these as three distinct layers:
- Referenced standard grade, a category under a named standard and edition.
- Local or association schedule, a regional trading or pricing convention.
- Supplier screen/size code, an internal commercial band, which may be tighter and may use numbers such as 220 or 250.
Never compare “premium” from Supplier A with “special” from Supplier B. Compare the written count and defect specification using one agreed test.
What the count does—and does not—measure
If a 50 g sample contains 250 intact berries, the simple average is 0.20 g per berry. If it contains 500, the simple average is 0.10 g. Those are arithmetic examples, not claims about Union Sure lots.
The count can be affected by:
- moisture content;
- broken pieces included or removed;
- unusually shrivelled or immature berries;
- stems and foreign matter in the weighed sample;
- whether berries are stuck together;
- sample segregation in the bag;
- rounding and boundary rules.
A wetter berry can weigh more without being physically larger. A lot with many broken pieces can produce a distorted count depending on how pieces are treated. Control these factors before using count to settle price.
Write a repeatable buyer method
The number is only reproducible if the method is. Say how much sample, whether broken fruit and stems are counted, how many subsamples, and what tolerance you will accept. We would rather agree that in the specification than argue about it against an arriving container, and any supplier who resists writing it down is telling you something. If the governing standard’s official test method is available and suitable, cite it exactly. If the transaction uses a buyer-defined commercial method, label it as such. A practical method can state:
- define the lot and select packages under a written sampling plan;
- combine increments and reduce the composite without hand-selecting large berries;
- condition/test the sample under agreed conditions;
- remove only the material the specification defines as foreign matter;
- weigh 50.0 g to the agreed balance resolution;
- count intact berries and handle broken pieces by the written rule;
- repeat on a second representative portion;
- report both results and the agreed average or worst-case decision;
- retain the portions and photographs with a scale.
The repeat rule, treatment of fragments and acceptance boundary must be agreed in advance. Do not invent them after one result misses the target.
Use ranges when consistency matters
A maximum count controls the small-berry tail only weakly. If an application requires visual uniformity, add:
- upper and lower count bands;
- permitted percentage outside a dimensional screen range;
- maximum broken, undersized and shrivelled pieces;
- uniformity assessed from multiple portions.
This prevents a lot of mixed very large and very small berries from passing on an average alone.
Size is not the full grade
Two lots at the same count can differ in moisture, colour, sugar, softness, defect rate and residue status. Buyers who negotiate hard on count and leave the rest of the specification loose usually get exactly the berry size they asked for and a surprise somewhere else. Size belongs in the specification, but it should be one line among ten. GB/T 18672-2014 is a product quality standard, but a Ningxia Health Commission interpretation explains that the 2014 revision removed food-safety indicators and addresses quality, sensory characteristics and grading. (Ningxia standard interpretation)
Therefore, “meets 280 count” does not establish pesticide, sulphite, microbiological or contaminant compliance. A complete bulk-goji specification should address:
Identity and origin
- species;
- origin claim and traceability evidence;
- crop year/harvest period;
- organic or geographical-indication claim only when verified.
Sensory and physical quality
- colour range without claiming colour proves origin;
- characteristic odour and flavour;
- foreign matter;
- stems and leaves;
- immature, shrivelled, discoloured and oily/sticky berries;
- broken pieces;
- live/dead insects and mould criteria;
- clumping and free-flowing condition.
Chemistry and safety
- moisture and, where relevant, water activity with methods;
- sulphur dioxide/sulphites;
- pesticide residues for the destination market;
- heavy metals, mycotoxins and microbiology based on risk and law;
- unauthorized colourants or other adulteration risks.
Commercial controls
- pack material and net weight;
- lot coding and COA;
- storage and transport;
- remaining shelf life;
- sample approval and change notification.
Keep Green Food and organic claims separate
The Chinese Green Food standard is not a synonym for the general goji grade. The official standards system shows NY/T 1051-2025 replacing NY/T 1051-2014, effective 1 May 2026. (replacement record)
Do not cite the superseded 2014 edition as current, and do not describe a lot as Green Food merely because a test result resembles one limit. Certification scope, operator and product evidence must support the claim. Export organic claims follow separate destination-market rules.
A better RFQ line
Avoid:
Premium Ningxia goji, 250 size, EU standard.
Use:
Dried goji berries, species [defined], origin claim [defined]. Size: no more than [X] intact berries per 50.0 g using [GB/T method or attached buyer method], tested on [number] representative portions; fragments handled as [rule]. Full physical-defect, moisture, sulphite, pesticide, microbiological, packaging and traceability requirements are in Specification [revision]. Supplier shall report actual lot count and results on the COA and notify process/origin changes before shipment.
The brackets force the buyer to decide what the marketing phrase omitted.
How to compare supplier samples
Blind-code samples before the team evaluates them. Record:
- count results in duplicate;
- weight of 100 berries as a secondary check;
- size distribution or image analysis if visual uniformity matters;
- defect sort by category and mass percentage;
- moisture and water activity;
- colour under controlled lighting;
- sensory result in the intended use;
- rehydration or texture if relevant.
Keep the approved reference sample sealed under controlled storage. A photograph is helpful for alignment but cannot replace a measurable tolerance.
Final buyer checklist
- [ ] The quotation names a standard, edition and grade—or clearly says supplier-defined.
- [ ] Count is expressed per 50 g with a reproducible method.
- [ ] Fragment, moisture, sampling and repeat rules are written.
- [ ] National reference and local commercial schedule are not mixed.
- [ ] Old ZBB or superseded GB/NY references are removed.
- [ ] Size is not used as proof of origin or food safety.
- [ ] Physical defects, chemistry, microbiology and packaging are specified separately.
- [ ] COA reports actual count and lot identity.
- [ ] An approved representative sample is retained.
- [ ] Any origin, process or size-screen change requires notice.
Count per 50 g is valuable precisely because it can be measured. Keep it in that role: one controlled size metric inside a complete, current and destination-specific goji specification.
Frequently asked questions
Does a lower grade number mean better quality?
It means larger fruit, not better fruit. Count per 50 g measures size only. Two lots with the same count can differ in moisture, colour, defect rate and residue status, so size belongs in the specification as one line among ten.
Is “Grade A” a defined standard?
Not on its own. Chinese national, local and supplier schedules all use similar words for different bands, and the same word can be attached to different material. A quotation has to name the standard, the edition and the grade, or state clearly that the band is supplier-defined.
Why do two laboratories report different counts for the same lot?
Almost always the method. Sample mass, whether stems and broken pieces are counted, how the composite is reduced and the moisture condition all change the result. Agree the method in the specification and the numbers become comparable.
Where to go next
Size is where a goji specification starts. These cover what it does not say.
- EU pesticide MRLs and how goji is classified — the residue question that size grading says nothing about.
- organic, low-pesticide and conventional compared — the three sourcing routes behind the same grade number.
- verifying a Ningxia origin claim — origin is a separate claim needing separate evidence.
- ask for graded samples — tell us the application and we will send the counts that suit it.
Published 23 June 2026. Last reviewed 15 August 2026 by the Union Sure technical team. Regulatory limits, standards and market requirements change — verify every legal limit against the current official source before it is used to approve a shipment.
