Northern berries
Northern berries are the best source of polyphenols in Finland.
- The cold, Nordic winter keeps the forests clean and healthy.
- Northern berries create polyphenols with the help of the midnight sun during the short summer season.
- The brief, intensive growing season also gives the berries their intense and very unique flavour.
Most of the polyphenols locate only in the skin and seeds of the berries.
The northern habitat
Read more about Wild berries
Part of folklore
Polyphenols
Polyphenols are plant metabolites that protect plants against things like various pathogens and harmful UV radiation from the sun. Therefore, plants form polyphenols to be their defence mechanisms. Polyphenols also contribute to plant colour and taste; for instance, bitterness. Indeed, you could say the darker the colour of the fruit or berry, the more polyphenol compounds it contains. Berries are a major source of polyphenols.” Sustainable Health from Food – National Nutrition Recommendations 2024, National Nutrition Council • Finnish Institute for Health and Welfare.
See the polyphenol content of Berrie products here.
The more colour, the better
Wild Bilberry
The wild bilberry is a perennial dwarf shrub approximately 30 cm (11.81 in) high. It typically grows in coniferous forests. Some of its substrates include slightly shady woods, northern slopes, the edges of clear-felled areas and the banks of forest ponds. The bilberry harvesting period lasts from the end of July to the beginning of September. We use wild bilberries in our products.
Lingonberry
The lingonberry is a perennial dwarf shrub approximately 5–30 cm (1.97–11.81 inches) high. It grows in the forest undergrowth. Typical substrates include dry, rather dry or fresh heaths. By comparison with other natural berries, the lingonberry produces the most bountiful harvest. The lingonberry harvesting period lasts from the beginning of August to the beginning of October. We use wild lingonberries in our products.
Cranberry
The small cranberry is a low-growing dwarf shrub growing in the wild. Its berries are 10–15 mm (0.39–0.59 inches) wide and globular or tear-drop shaped. The small cranberry blooms in June and July. The berries are red or dark purple in colour and tart in taste. The small cranberry grows on nutrient-poor fens and pine bogs, and can be picked from late September until winter sets in. We use cultivated cranberries in our products.
Sea Buckthorn
The wild sea buckthorn is a shrub 0.5–3 metres (1.77–9.84 feet) high. Its berries are oblong drupes 8–10 mm (0.31–0.39 inches) in length; succulent and yellow or amber in colour. The sea buckthorn grows the best on stony sand or gravel beaches. It demands plenty of sunlight to grow. The sea buckthorn harvest season begins in October; the berries are picked preferably after the first touches of frost. We use cultivated sea buckthorns in our products.
Raspberry
The wild raspberry is a shrub 50–150 cm (19.69–59.06 inches) high with biennial stalks. The raspberry blooms in July and August, and its harvest season lasts from the beginning of August to the beginning of September. Raspberries are the most high-yielding natural berries. They grow in grove-like, fresh heaths, along the edges of ditches and forests as well as clear-felled areas and roadsides. We use cultivated raspberries in our products.
Blackcurrant
The blackcurrant is a shrub 1–1.5 m (3.28–4.92 feet) high. Its preferred habitats consist of brookside groves, river and stream banks of rivers and seaside bushes. The blackcurrant harvest matures in August. We use cultivated blackcurrants in our products.
Strawberry
The strawberry is a herbaceous perennial that grows runners. Strawberries mature in early July. We use cultivated strawberries in our products.
Cloudberry
The cloudberry is a herbaceous perennial 10–25 cm (3.94–9.84 inches) high. It blooms in June, and the berries mature at the end of July or the beginning of August. Ripe cloudberries are fragrant and succulent, amber in colour. The cloudberry grows in bogs throughout Finland. We use wild cloudberries in our products.