Essiac and the Brave New World. 2007. Fast Forward to 2021. Montana, Essiac and Blue Moon Herbs.
Greetings from Montana's beautiful Flathead Valley! Blue Moon Herbs is a small independent Montana business run by women with the help of a few good men. There are more or less four of us. We are all employees and approach our work as a team. Since 2008 we have been making Essiac tea the way its developer Rene Caisse did, based on the research of Mali Klein and Sheila Snow, who worked directly with Nurse Caisse to get her story out and keep the knowledge of Essiac going. We have put on seminars, workshops, talks, Essiac tea parties and more over the years to continue that work and have been producing, selling and giving away Essiac tea for over 14 years now!
Where We're coming from. My family has been in Montana for seven generations, arriving as refugees from 'east of here' like all the white people in the U.S. once did. The original peoples of this area (Flathead Indian Reservation) have been here since the ice age, and no doubt even earlier. The first modern record of Essiac came from the indigenous world of 1890s Canada, North Ontario.
We are honored to be helping keep Essiac available for our local community and outward from there to that place where we can still keep our equilibrium and be of service.
A lot of people could benefit from a cup of tea to temper the intensity of these times and help navigate the changes we will make to see our way forward. Essiac at bedtime to bring our peaceful wits back together... even if not everyone is getting along on that bigger stage, is important.. The Scope of our Mission Given the Current Affairs of the World We want to do all we can to keep the right information and a good product available and serve as many people as we can with what we have. We have always shipped our products internationally but the cost and reliability of shipping overseas has been a money and time drain that is making it more difficult to flesh out the work we are trying to do right here at home.
When the pandemic lockdown began 19 months ago, we bought supplies in advance, anticipating that prices would be rising. It was a good move, as we still have a good store of tea-making, packaging and office supplies on hand. Not only that, the availability of some of these items has been impacted by supply chain issues. Planning ahead has worked well for us as we are not out of stock on anything! Herbs have substantially risen in price and it is a new ballgame with supply and demand in that world, which we are tackling by growing our own Sheep sorrel. We continue to look for a good contract grower in the Northwest US and/or an experienced commercial organic herb grower that is looking for work and might like to help us in our garden.
For the Record and from Debbie's heart We are cheering for the little people that look out for each other, guided by an inborn kindness of the heart. I stand behind our fairly elected President Biden, the Constitution, doing the right thing, cooperating and collaborating to find and learn from the truth as if nothing was more important. I am for being kind and respectful towards all and really listening. So here we are coming out for all that is good, including Essiac. I hope we can all agree that the best way to stay indivisible and keep liberty and justice for all of us is to work together with an eye to what's best for our kids and all those who will come after them so they can enjoy the safest happiest healthiest future there can be, one cup of tea at a time...
Friends and families are struggling with lots no matter what your politics are. It is so hard sometimes but I believe we should never give up on trying to work together for the common good, in a respectful honest way that will help us all.
Where to get good Essiac information The best source of information about Essiac is not so much from universities, medical doctors or even herbalists and definitely not unfamiliar sources on the internet. It is an old recipe that has been kept alive thanks to the dedication of a succession of people who have all done their part. Its a story with many chapters that spans way over 100 years although the written record doesn't begin till then. In the 20th century Essiac came out of the wilderness and began its journey in the modern world. Sheila Snow and Mary McPherson were there helping and supporting Rene Caisse and Essiac for much of it.
Mali Klein and Sheila Snow - a 15-year collaboration Mali Klein helped Sheila write about the story of Essiac and Rene Caisse, and is the one who brought to light the previously well-guarded silence about Sheep sorrel roots being Caisse's 'secret ingredient'.
Based on her own research findings and personal journey with Essiac, and all she learned from Sheila and Mary and the archives, Mali strongly advocates for research on Essiac and has shared the knowledge base she and Sheila amassed worldwide in print and electronically at the Essiac Council.org. Sheila Snow and Mali Klein combined have authored 7+ books on Essiac, which represents the vast majority of the entire body of literature in print on the subject. The most recent is the Essiac Essentials Handbook. Besides on our website, is also available on Amazon and other platforms as an ebook. We sell the softcover version. It addresses the questions former industry studies on Essiac have left unanswered, and represents a very compelling argument for more and better research on Essiac based on the latest research findings on the individual herbs.
The Essiac Council The Essiac Council.org website was created to showcase the Sheila Snow Fraser Essiac Archive Collection, a body of historical information about Essiac that Mali Klein and Sheila Snow amassed over 25+ years of research and recently finished the work of converting to an electronic format for anyone to freely access online. It also provides ongoing real-time data. It has a very good searchable database to look up specific questions. The website is not beholden to any corporations or outside influences. The Essiac Council website has a list of suppliers worldwide that are making very high quality Essiac.
Overseas shipping of orders suspended as of November 1, 2021 A number of factors have played into our recent decision to suspend international shipping except to Canada, until the pandemic and the problems that we currently have with the global supply chain function are resolved better. 1. Deliveries increasingly encounter issues and are neither delivered nor returned with no explanation. Sometimes a substantial amount of money is lost because of the lack of accountability, which negatively impacts both us and the customer! 2. More and more customers are confused by misinformation gotten from the internet, canceling orders that have already been shipped and can't be resold if returned. 3. New VAT charges hugely increasing the cost of shipping to Britain from the US 4. Last but not least, it just doesn't make sense to send small packages long distances when now finally there are good sources for Essiac overseas. Our friends in Ireland, for example: Rene Caisse Tea Ireland!
If you are already an established customer, and can't find a US address to receive your order, we will still try to work with you, just contact us. The change will be effective November 1, 2021.
Trust your sources We recommend that you get your information from the most reliable sources you can find. We are sorry but we can only provide the herbs, the books about them, Essiac Tea-making kits and Essiac Seed kits, but we are legally barred from giving advice or claims that are medical. When a business sells Essiac, it cannot talk about its properties, but the reverse is also true. Sites like the Essiac Council are free to provide information about the relationship between Essiac and wellness because they aren't selling a product.
Why good Essiac is not easy to find As you will see on the Essiac Council site list of suppliers, there are only a handful worldwide that even include Sheep sorrel roots in the tea. Most use only the leaves because there is currently no commercial source for Sheep sorrel root. There are contract growing arrangements which require significant financing. With growing climate change issues, the western US has felt it this year with drought and wildfires.
On top of that, historically the established organic herb farms have been hesitant to grow Sheep sorrel without a contract because Essiac is not well-known enough to speculate and just plant Sheep sorrel, which they can't even harvest until the second year. As a result, they are hesitant to invest in it. They need the money from good cash crops more than the mission to keep the world in Essiac, which is truly a labor of love. We are growing our own Sorrel for the roots and will have to rely on it solely to stay in business within one year. This is a little tricky since we are trying to be a company that makes the tea and now also be organic farmers. However, we love our garden and are beyond excited to bring in our first major harvest next spring!
The Good News In 2019 three of us from Blue Moon Herbs joined Mali Klein at the First International Health Congress on Integrative Oncology in Geneva, Switzerland. Mali Klein presented the section on Indigenous Medicine and Essiac and gave the world a gift from the past that may play a very vital role in leading a large number of people out of the woods of today's health crises with a simple option that is a good companion to whatever else may be available. How? We can all grow these herbs ourselves in our own backyards or balconies and make our own Essiac. It is all spelled out in the Snow/Klein books how to manage with what is available. Essiac is getting some traction in Europe and around the world. There is much more to come. We carry the seed.
A multiple choice answer 🙂 The Blue Moon Herbs Deluxe Essiac Tea Sampler Pack
We have been putting together buying options for small and medium budgets at Blue Moon. In the past week we have added two products that widen your choices when looking to try working with the variations on the basic Essiac formula. Now there are three combination pack buying choices, with up to 10% savings!
The Essiac Tea Combo Program - a six month program - $123 - 120g herbs - Includes the Essiac Essentials Handbook and Program Guidelines.
The Deluxe Essiac Tea Sampler Pack - $55 - 50g of herbs, approx. 3 months' supply + 10g Essiac Topical Solution herbs (can be used either internally or externally) Also includes a 1 oz. measuring spoon and ceramic Blue Moon teacup!
All of our herb mixes (with the exception of Essiac Topical Solution) contain Rene Caisse's classic 4-herb Essiac formula consisting of Burdock, Sheep sorrel (25% roots), Slippery elm and Turkey rhubarb. Essiac Gold also includes Goldenseal and Essiac with Red Clover also includes Red clover. Essiac Extra's Sheep sorrel is 50% roots.
Want Sheep sorrel root?
The Essiac Topical Solution herbs contain 63% Sheep sorrel roots, with Sheep sorrel leaves and Slippery elm inner bark comprising the rest of the mix. There are a lot of different ways to work with this tea mix. It can be taken as you would take regular Essiac, but it is designed to also be used topically. The many possible uses are described with the included instructions. One use that is not mentioned is that it could be used to increase the root content of Essiac made from scratch. This is something to consider, as Sheep sorrel root remains commercially unavailable sold alone.
A little history
The 4-herb Essiac was Rene Caisse's core formula from the late 1920s onward. However, odds are definitely in favor of her occasionally using some of the other herbs from the original 8-herb formula - Watercress, Red clover, Periwinkle and Goldthread - when they were available and/or she wanted the additional herb for a specific patient. She also substituted other herbs in when supplies were low. For example, she probably occasionally substituted Red clover or Watercress for Sheep sorrel. Essiac Gold and Essiac with Red Clover are two of the adjunct formulae that Mali Klein determined were the most accurate representations of what Rene Caisse was doing, based on testimony from the 1939 Canadian Cancer Commission hearings and many other clues in the Essiac Archives collected and analyzed over time.
The Sheila Snow Fraser Essiac Archives Collection is now available online for the whole world to enjoy, study and learn from! I can't begin to say how amazing this new website is! It is completely searchable and worthy of being the database for formal Essiac research for our future and that of everyone on the earth! There is nothing like it anywhere else on the internet for solid Essiac information. We were honored to be one of only a few to receive our own copy of the original archive collection digitally. We very much look forward to analyzing and blogging about the information and evidence, when we are not growing Sheep sorrel or getting in hot water!! Do visit EssiacCouncil.org.
Enjoy your Essiac and the return of sunnier days. May we all be very well!
Maybe it's the only thing that really can. Stop, Listen, Be. Take time for a re-set. Sipping hot liquids appears to be a good idea. That was not medical advice.
Blue Moon Herbs is a small independent Montana business that has been proudly making high quality Essiac tea herbs for the general public since 2007. We also have a commitment to community connections and win-win solutions that benefit everyone, especially those most in need.Our mission is to be a shining example of how much more a company can be beyond just providing goods and/or services.
Blue Moon Herbs is one of the top sources worldwide for high-quality and affordable Essiac herbs, Sheep sorrel roots included. The vast majority of Essiac mixes have no Sheep sorrel roots in them at all - only leaves. The Sheep sorrel in our Essiac blend is 25% roots. Generally the ratio of sorrel roots to aerial parts in Essiac is unstated, because it is such a tiny amount. Arupa Swiss, in Germany, is a good source for European customers, with 30% roots. They follow the proper techniques and formulae as taught by Mali Klein. Because of what's going on in the world right now, it makes sense to order your Essiac herbs from as close a source as possible to reduce the cost of shipping expenses and the wear and tear on systems caused by shipping small items over vast distances. We are pleased to suggest Arupa as an option for folks across the world from the US. Thanks!
We operate from the core principles of permaculture: caring for the earth, caring for the people, and sharing the bounty. We use sustainable and intensive organic methods both in the field and in our office, where we work as a team on all operations.
We sell the herbs, tea-making supplies, books and more online and in stores in Montana’s Flathead Valley and the region. We also make the Essiac herbs available to those in need at reduced or no charge in our area through the Glad To Be Here Project, which we designed to bring people together around inexpensive, simple ways of staying well, including taking Essiac! We encourage others to do this too. In that spirit, we offer the Essiac Master Batch, which includes 2 lbs. 13.5 oz. of Essiac herbs, enough for a fine Essiac caregiving effort, or several families pooling their resources for the lowest per ounce price for the herbs.
We grow and wild-harvest part of our own Sheep sorrel roots and are proud members of the Made in Montana program. In addition we contract with a commercial organic grower specifically for Sheep sorrel roots. This is because although the Sheep sorrel “herb” is commercially available, the roots are not. Once in a Blue Moon” – Essiac with the Sheep sorrel portion 25% roots…that’s us!
Our purpose rests on honoring the legacy of the Native American Medicine Man who first brought the knowledge of the tea out of the Northern Ontario bush in the 1890s, sharing it freely with an English woman. We also honor the legacy of Canadian nurse Rene Caisse, who refined the formula in the 1920s and brought it to the general public. We follow all that is known about Nurse Caisse’s working methods and materials and always keep an eye to what will be best for future generations.
Rene Caisse’s dream 50 years ago was for Essiac to be known and available to everyone everywhere. Mali Klein has devoted the last 25+ years of her life to this vocation, researching growing methods and treatment protocols with the various Essiac formulae. Alone and collectively with Sheila Snow, she has produced six books on Essiac. Ms. Klein recently completed the curation of the Sheila Snow Fraser Essiac Archive Collection, which is the world’s largest collection of Essiac history, including news clippings, private correspondence, business records, patient histories and more.
Shortly after January 1, 2020 the Essiac Archive custodians provided 45 individuals and organizations across the world with electronic copies of the entire Essiac archive collection. One of them, Debbie Jakovac (me), is the owner of Blue Moon Herbs. Watch the website to see Essiac history being shared for the first time as the entire collection comes out over the coming weeks and months.
Mali and Debbie have collaborated since 2010 to keep Essiac going on into the future beyond our lifetimes. The amount of heart and soul that Mali has given for Essiac is our inspiration to continue this work.
We support exploring what herbal medicine can mean in the 21st century for keeping and/or regaining optimum health. We believe the best way Blue Moon Herbs can do this is by providing the resources so people can freely make their own informed choices. A Cup of Tea can always help....
“As far as her mom was concerned, tea fixed everything. Have a cold? Have some tea. Broken bones? There's a tea for that too. Somewhere in her mother's pantry, Laurel suspected, was a box of tea that said, 'In case of Armageddon, steep three to five minutes'.” Aprilynne Pike, Illusions
The Ancestral Medicine Section of the First International Health Congress on Integrative Oncology and Ethical and Sustainable Patient Care was held on Saturday, June 29, 2019. The place: Geneva Switzerland! We were there to see Mali Klein's presentation on the subject of the relevance of Essiac to health and healing in the 21st Century. Following Mali's presentation on Essiac are presentations by her co-panel members Dr. Patrick Shan (France) - Traditional Chinese Medicine and Dr. Manan Soni (India), Ayurveda. The speakers are very informative and provide a great perspective on the nature of healing and the common themes that cut across cultural and temporal boundaries.
The term 'open source' is based upon "sharing information from publicly available sources (as opposed to covert or clandestine sources)."
I have been following a Facebook group called the Rene Caisse Essiac Tea Users Group. It has been quite a journey and has really brought home a few realizations. Facebook is like a slice of the greater world and … although free speech is a precious thing, things can sometimes get lost in the translation….or buried in the posts! Read More →
Greetings all! It doesn't seem like three whole months have passed since Mali Klein's 2014 visit. It is good to have the relative quiet of winter to absorb it all and start making plans for the coming growing season. February is like a lingering chance to do that before the sun is flooding in again and it is time to get back in the field! One of my winter projects was putting together this little recap of 2014 in a video format. So come along for a trip out to our Essiac growing sites in Montana's Flathead Valley to see what we have done in Phase 1 of growing the Essiac herbs. There is also a section with a few harvesting tips and some footage of Watercress and Goldthread in the wild. We hope you enjoy it!
Funny how one day things appear in a certain light, and then the next day everything changes in such a fundamental way that its like when a whole flock of birds simultaneously moves as one, in a new direction altogether. Suddenly the picture has transformed and it's a brand new beginning!
"A new idea is like a plant. It takes time to establish a good root system before it begins to bear fruit." - Mali Klein, Essiac Master Class 2014
Food for thought: Mali posits a plateful of it in the following synopsis: Read More →
This is the only Essiac master class offered anywhere. It happens only once per year, and 2014 marks our final gathering in Missoula, Montana. This is a one-of-a-kind experience. It will not be recorded, in keeping with the idea behind such gatherings, so that the experience will be intimate, candid and completely unique. The theme will be about Essiac and its role in healing in the context of our personal lives as well as how that can best compliment the world we live in. Participants will directly experience some of the healing protocols Mali Klein has developed over the past twenty years. All are welcome, including those with serious illness, as well as those in the profession of providing health care. It is for anyone who sees the importance of keeping the knowledge and use of this and other herbal medicines alive and would like to be part of a dialogue about how we as individuals, professionals and businesspersons can help to facilitate this.
Essiac and herbal medicine can have an amazing role to play in the emerging healing paradigms of the 21st century. Master class attendees will be introduced to a perspective not shared quite so freely in the written word as it will be in this session. Each class has been a stand-alone experience and prior attendance is not required.
The 2014 Master Class will focus on the original 8-herb formula handed down from an old Native American medicine man in Northern Ontario in the 1890s. But more than that, it will be from the perspective of the Medicine man that brought this formula to us in the 1890s. Before the days of Essiac. (The formula was later reduced to a four herb formula by Rene Caisse and those four herbs - Burdock, Sheep sorrel, Slippery elm and Turkey rhubarb, make up most of what is sold as Essiac today.)
This original eight herb formula is what Rene began working with when she first started her work with the herbs in the 1920s, and the results were impressive. Mali Klein's work now focuses almost completely on this original eight-herb formula, which has been shelved since the 1920s, and which Rene Caisse only revealed in writing once. Virtually all of the 8-herb Essiac formulas on the market today do not contain the herbs originally used.
Mali will be sharing her findings about this indigenous formula and what happened to it in her newest book Black Root Medicine, the Original Native American Essiac Formula, to be released September 1, 2014. Mali will share some insights and evidence that will forever change your assumptions about what Essiac is and how the politics and confusion about the correct formula following Rene's death resulted in so much misinformation about Essiac in the years to follow.
Included in the tuition will be signed copies of the new book!
Mali will go deep into the subject of healing and living a quality life, with or without serious health challenges, and will be sharing a unique approach to health and healing using a combination drawing from Native American, Buddhist and other spiritual traditions. Mali will also be available for private consultations from October 1 - 24.
