Why Manoomin Wild Rice Is So Expensive | So Expensive Food | Business Insider

Manoomin, meaning "the good berry," is a type of wild rice that has been harvested by the Ojibwe people in the Great Lakes region of North America for centuries. At $24 per pound, manoomin costs 15 times as much as white rice.
For the Ojibwe people, harvesting this rice means much more than money. It's a way to connect with their ancestors and pass on their traditions to future generations. But as the rest of the world discovers this ancient grain, the tribe fears that it will lose its importance and that its natural ecosystem will be exploited.
So, what is the meaning of manoomin? And why is it so expensive?
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Why Manoomin Wild Rice Is So Expensive | So Expensive Food | Business Insider

[@sophiaisabelle01]

Manoomin Wild Rice is expensive due to ten fact that there's a long tedious process behind its manufacture. These workers deserve all the credit they could possibly get.

[@N0Xa880iUL]

How do you know so much

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

@@N0Xa880iUL Only Allah knows. 💋s to you.

[@OGmemegenerator]

@@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536 💀

[@MrTxalus]

Its about Demand and supply. Those who need it will pay more and those who don’t need it don’t have to buy.

[@joaoalbertodosanjosgomes1536]

@@OGmemegenerator💀

[@brickprik]

I grew up eating this stuff, as we harvested it right out our back door. We had it so much I would ask for white rice for something different. I don't live in that part of Canada anymore and really miss it, along with the walleye fillets. Everytime I go back that's all I want to eat.

[@reahsahpagel3354]

I got the opportunity at my university to take a class about indigenous seed sovereignty and land policy. One of the activities we did was actually learning the process of getting the rice grain to the final stage so they can eat it. Albeit it was a little of the process and not the whole thing. But i appreciated it so much especially in a region where it was so abundant at one point. My university also makes some manoomin dishes at the dining hall as well. It’s a step forward for sure. I suggest you guys try it with berries, apples and maple syrup w manoomin soo good!

[@jchi]

ooc, which uni was that? sounds like a super interesting course!

[@freshprince130]

Growing up in the inner city my mom always served wild rice. She was the only person I knew who made it. I'm so thankful.

[@helenabara2092]

Never heard and never seen. Amazing.

[@niklas5547]

Love to see people still doing stuff just for the sake of keeping a tradition alive and showing it to their kids. As a child my grandfather(farmer) would insist on teaching us city-kids the entire process of harvesting hay and grain by hand and horse. We thought it was just silly because he had a tractor and all these machines. Now they are some of my most cherished and vivid memories from my childhood

[@Srt98srt]

My uncle is Ojibwa and every year for Christmas we all get bags of this stuff, hand harvested by his family on the White Earth Reservation, just like in the video. Really cool that wild rice is finally getting some more widespread notoriety, as it’s always been very important to Minnesotans, especially natives.

[@joan-mariacbrooks]

Lucky you! I hope they have a great harvest!

[@RRan-dk7ct]

And that's where i ordered from.

[@benobro5831]

Michiganders too

[@rlegato364]

Me too! From my father in law. Best stuff on earth. 😋

[@eustab.anas-mann9510]

I don't think you know what "notoriety" means.

[@SewardWriter]

I like these guys. They're passionate, intelligent, and seem like a lot of fun. Also, I feel less weird for thanking my tomato plants when I'm picking.

[@kileysevens9116]

Yes, thanking the earth for what it provides for us is a huge thing. 😊

[@user-zb8tq5pr4x]

@@kileysevens9116 The earth doesn't provide anything, these plants are doing their best to survive and we're killing them for our personal gains. EVOLUTIOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOON

[@childofcascadia]

Dead soul.

[@elohimmcgovern5951]

5:16 I love the kid hitting the griddy in the background

[@jaytravis2487]

For anyone who hasn't tried this, it's really the best rice. It's substantial and slightly nutty. Even an amateur cook will get and interesting texture from this rice. I haven't seen it in years but I hope that changes

[@peterbarnard6396]

Love seeming an amazing product from my home state! Personally, I switched to patty-grown from MN as the price of true wild has become too expensive in recent years. That typed, I fully support paying maximum price for traditionally harvested rice!

[@miguelbarrera1215]

I eat wild rice everyday! Much respect for all the hard work:)

[@AjayTiwari-en9nz]

You must be having a lot of money.

[@Realatmx]

Omg where do you live😍

[@bobroberts5820]

@@AjayTiwari-en9nz Possible it's cheaper for them if they have connections to harvesters

[@subhankarghosh5787]

In Eastern Asia people take rice as there main food and being a Bengali I know that few rice spices are extinct. Like BHADOI RICE / BHADOI CHAL is one of the tastiest rice I've ever tasted . The famous basmati rice is no where close to this rice . But now i don't think that I would ever be able to taste that. 🥺🥺

[@krrippkanojia514]

Tai!? Kothay kheyechhilen?

[@subhankarghosh5787]

@@krrippkanojia514 WEST BENGAL e Malda te, my grandfather was a farmar and he bought some vadoi chal ( Dheki Chata) . And one of my father's friend gave us some chal and luckily I have some of that .

[@Harshit-vu6ky]

They actually have a world seed bank....

[@yoursafeplace8476]

Make contact with the native americans here, I'm sure they may send you a small amount so you could taste it, or even possibly trade with you for some if possible! native americans love to share tradition with others who have their own tradition!

[@ralphkatsidis8338]

Basmati rice is bland.

[@joan-mariacbrooks]

Manoomin is the best 'rice' ever and the only one I buy from Indigenous dealers at powwows when some are selling it or Indigenous companies. It has a wonderful nutty flavor and right now I have a very small bag left. Make it in soups or alone with a pat of butter and it's awesome eating. But I honestly don't share when I have some. It's just precious.

[@RRan-dk7ct]

That's right.

[@MrOnionRing]

this video made me emotional idk why, i think seeing aboriginal people succeed like this moved me. All i see out in the prairie provinces are pain among our people.

[@andrewkutches]

Thank you for creating this video. It brings awareness and I will see where to purchase this rice.

[@mooonie6634]

If it says on the package, Product of California, it's not the real deal. You can also acquire wild rice grown in Canada.

[@adamchurvis1]

I spent three summers in the early Seventies in the Canadian wilderness among some of the most expansive and productive wild rice growths you can imagine. A couple of years earlier I had seen photos of wild rice cane-and-canoe thrashing in a Time-Life cookbook series on international cuisines, and these I now saw were exactly the same. Just amazingly vast, and all completely unorganized and wild. Now I pay a bloody fortune for truly "wild" wild rice like this.

[@thegreencompany2101]

Great to see how this variety of rice grows and is processed. The commitment and skills of the employees is also worth mentioning! Really nice!

[@NazriB]

Lies again? AIA Food

[@thegreencompany2101]

@@NazriB can you please explain your reaction? I don’t understand😅

[@joan-mariacbrooks]

@@NazriB Are you familiar with Indigenous Culture here in this country? Because this is not AIA food. And no lies are being told here.

[@WelfareChrist]

we honestly need more native american restaurants that food looks really good

[@soxpeewee]

The offer tobacco to whatever they're hunting or gathering...what do they offer to tobacco plants?

[@freezingcicada6852]

I'm glad its getting attention. I knew a rice farmer doing the something similar farming wild rice in Indian Reservations. He was bouncing around 2 jobs and the farm thing cause he was trying to secure more funding to expand. He actually had demand for it (China was big bulk buyer) but he couldnt get business loans from banks just to reinvest in trucks and equipment.

[@garythebard]

Fascinating. Also the composer for this video deserves some recognition, especially around the 7 minute mark. Great composition.

[@user-zb8tq5pr4x]

Sounds like something written by chatgpt lol

[@garythebard]

@@user-zb8tq5pr4x Haha, I suppose I can see that. Confirming my humanity, although I suppose it's the kind of thing an AI would do isn't it? ;) Seriously though that music caught my ear big time, as a composer I gotta do my part and acknowledge good music, especially when it's lurking in somewhere unexpected. Give that part of the video a close listen! Hope you're having a nice weekend!

[@user-zb8tq5pr4x]

Hey don't get me wrong, I'm not saying it isn't pleasant (: I dabble in music a bit and I appreciate the music in this video, but I'm sadly not educated enough to recognize the technical details of music. I bet it's even more beautiful in a way when you have that skill

[@Shakodancer16]

Being from Mn I appreciate all of this so much❤

[@jekku4688]

A fascinating "new" thing to learn about my home state, I never knew! Is it somewhat ironic that just north of Mole lake is...RICE lake? 🤔

[@tomelko]

There are 120 bodies of water in Minnesota officially named "Rice Lake".

[@thatdude3977]

Because your history is written by ignorance

[@farticlesofconflatulation]

As a Mexican, Mole and Rice make my mouth water.

[@miketheknife3072]

These people have the right idea they truly live with the land the don't make it conform to their ideals they conform to nature that's the way to do this 👍👍💯👍👍

[@samlboehner8111]

Thank you for sharing this video. Next time I'm our that way, I would love to stop by and observe the drying and shucking (dancing) process. Blessings to all.

[@MedorraBlue]

Thank you for showing some true Canadian history here! :)

[@renataravensong]

This is in the USA, not Canada.

[@kberkstr]

@@renataravensongthis culture and tradition transcends both countries. The Anishinaabe homeland spans from Minnesota to Quebec and as far north as the shores of Hudson Bay

[@adamwenson]

"The tribe fears that as the world discovers this grain it will lose its importance"... great, lets make a video so millions will watch it and will be interested in getting this rice!

[@leatherxrose7743]

Loved the video, what a great tradition! But the narrator got on my nerves every time she said 'roice' instead of rice 😂

[@orimiel]

1:46 😏 "But I know every rock and tree and creature Has a life, has a spirit, has a naaame" 🎶🦅🍃

[@tearose3763]

The very best rice there is, miigwech for this presentation

[@yeahyeah5976]

I need more information on that walleye cheek chowder, that looks ridiculously good!

[@noomwa]

It's wonderful tasting and I hope they continue to harvest in a sustainable way. Even the wild rice soup at the casino is good.

[@tseewenpii4834]

I recently purchased rice from the Red Band, it is very good. Years before in San Francisco i met a young ojwibwee women who told me about her people and the meaning of their harvest(s).

[@rtqii]

I have eaten this rice, it has a wonderful mouth feel, and the flavor reminded me of pistachio nuts. It's very rich.

[@alvingoh8469]

Looks yum... Wonder if they used this rice to make sake, how awesome would it taste...

[@charlessnortley4519]

RedLake MN... I love wild rice with hamburger an cream of mushroom. Wild Rice Casserole

[@i_bleed_makeup1187]

In the beginning of the video they said that they were afraid everyone will find out about this rice and it will lose it's importance. So naturally, Insider does a video on it so millions of people know about it 🤦🏻‍♀️🤷🏻‍♀️

[@reckonerwheel5336]

For the sake of accuracy, the “oo” in “manoomin” is pronounced like the “o” in the word “toll” not “tool”. “Muh-NOH-min”. The Ojibwe language doesn’t have that “ooh” sound, and if you catch an Ojibwe saying it that way, it’s because they didn’t get to learn their language, unfortunately.

[@kberkstr]

That’s not entirely true, it actually varies by dialect. Speakers of northwestern dialects in Minnesota and western Ontario tend to favor the “ooh” sound as in “tool”, for oo in strong syllables while more eastern speakers in Michigan and southern Ontario tend to prefer the “oh” sound in all cases.

[@sunraylight8]

Any way i dont want who first the importance is sharing and giving.. and i love rice... you sincere nutritional value of it. I ate wild rice kind like that very delescious i promise to you its just i ate a bluberry with kernel of oats and wheats... love it...

[@dircxx8554]

I still prefer the white rice 🍙 but wouldn’t mind try it

[@Bansaliens]

In india: it's unhygienic In Europe: it's expensive Hypocrisy 🤣

[@timothybrown5791]

It's great to see that people are still holding on to ancient traditions.

[@thesilentone4024]

Its expensive because like nobody uses it so there little of it. Farmed rice is cheap because its very plentiful and lots of it is grown. Its like how paw paw fruit is like $8 a fruit but its native to my dam state and the closest farm with these is 4 states over from me nobody in my state grows them except random gardener's.

[@NoriMori1992]

1:48 🎶 Has a life, has a spirit, has a name~ 🎶 (Sorry, had to 🤭)

[@uniquesubstance2353]

I really like white rice we have also kind of rice called Amber rice cuz the smells so good plants in South Iraq 🇮🇶 I will try wild rice 🌾

[@hananovinger]

Craving wild rice now! Definitely will need to go get some! It’s so yummy!

[@sudipbhaumik7905]

Food industry is biggest threat to food and bio diversity.but the governments around the world work on behalf of them and prosecute common people.

[@lightrealmrapono]

I have some Manoomin rice tea. It's a very nice and unique flavour.

[@thearchive2166]

Kid at 5:15 hitting the most felonious griddy

[@UncleAnaesthesia]

Miigwetch for showing this, it is important and every gift from Mother Earth is a bounty.

[@user_not_addicted]

It makes you wonder what the first people to harvest it were On .. I mean this can't be by " Accident "

[@davisjugroop3782]

This is wild stuff

[@BWGPT]

I had this rice at a Michelin resto 15 years ago as a risotto and I haven't aged since 😊

[@annsam2111]

😅😅😅

[@Gerald.69]

I love it and it grows wild in NY in bogs with cranberries also

[@GreenBeamGlockCassarole]

Wisconsin has some cool stuff

[@DiscoCatsMeow]

Technically all species of wild rice are not a grain. Genus zizania -it's the seed of the grass. Hence it's appropriate for a grain free diet.

[@butterflybush8981]

Suggestion - Maybe if you soak the rice overnight (8 to 15 hours or more) - it may hasten the cooking process. In South India this is the everyday normal process fr tough/ hard grains.

[@Darknimbus3]

Not all rice is the same though. In fact, this type of rice is not even in the same genus as the rice you may know and love. It could work, but maybe it might not. They’ve been dealing with this rice for hundreds of years. So why they don’t soak the rice overnight? You’d have to ask them, but there’s probably a reason.

[@Hans-iq3fn]

When they are roasting it in this video it is not to eat it, they are roasting it for storage. You have to soak and cook it later when you wan to eat it.

[@ConnorGhostHeart]

Very cool

[@alternator7893]

I like Lee’s slight Native American accent.

[@blazeblaze9118]

Awesome! 💯

[@antitank4060]

take what u need not what you want😍

[@Ryantrock8888]

Remember rice harvesters! The season is never more than 11 months away!

[@tatertott2390]

My mum would always make this kind of rice ...i hated it when i was little lol

[@DDRWakaLaka]

yeah, wild rice kinda blows

[@vnette9777]

I love it now but as a kid definitely not lol😂🙂

[@brucewayne853]

I just love their accent 🧐

[@gundminet2]

We had Manoomin rice at the Smithsonian Native American Museum.

[@harryfarmer3847]

This is same process wild rice is harvested here I Maine.

[@vidhoard]

They are all such lovely people.

[@kingmaybus8409]

Very cool we buy a couple pounds of this every time we go up to Minnesota and bring it back to Fort Wayne stockpiled

[@MISCSTUFFS]

1:49 i know im not the only one that thought "has a name"

[@rareview362]

I buy this regularly online and I will for the rest of my life God willing.

[@manishjain-pg6iy]

Appreciate and praise the efforts to protect their legacy

[@dvoiceotruth]

how many comments did you read before spitting this out?

[@vhvc5658]

In that case, chocolate and avocado should not be produced in countries other than Mexico or South America because they were also considered sacred there.

[@TerminatorAyushh]

Basically they have monopoly over harvesting of the rice. That's why this expensive.

[@hardamtripathi6956]

Great video. Glad your people are doing better than casinos… USA has done too much for natives

[@shamimaiasmin2588]

“Take what you need, not what you want”

[@DaChillSpot-MacMechi]

Love this family

[@NeGatifPerson]

I didn't know white people also has a tribe before, new to me🤔👍

[@Realatmx]

They are not white people they are native people of America before European colonised and vanished them from land

[@HeadEnterprise]

Just bring some heavy machinery and extract all those rice.

[@zackarylavoie1202]

0:45 - 0:55 : sadly has happened to all of our produce but greatly benefit for the nutrition of the world

[@philipyan8446]

We are a family owned business in China, and we are seeking a collaboration with the local farms.

[@zerotoeverything4348]

ooohhhh yeah, i saw this a thousand mile away 😂😂😂 since that one wild rice farmer with a boat starting popping out of my algo 😂

[@CFoRilL]

I question the description. How would it loss importance when it's feeding people?

[@xMoTionzxx]

Man I want to cry.

[@adarsh2k23]

The world is nothing without taste.

[@Prestrev1010]

Where in NYC can I buy Manoomin? Or what is a good site to purchase from?

[@beel448]

Very interesting

[@DDRWakaLaka]

p much every episode of So Expensive can be summarized with "they do it by hand"

[@K-Fed]

I made a similar comment in an earlier video. Literally, every product is expensive because of inefficiencies. Making products by hand instead of machines, foraging instead of farming, or using very rare and expensive raw materials. The artisans are always like, "we don't use machines because it makes a product that's only 98% as good for 1/3 the price and we don't like that so there they are in the back gathering dust."

[@DDRWakaLaka]

@@K-Fed Exactly. There's a handful of artisanal products they've shown where I can understand -- hand-painting and hand-carving, as an example, simply cannot be replicated as well by a machine. But this... this is shaking rice. C'mon.

[@peachtree2579]

Bro was getting sturdy on rice doing those smooth still turns

[@benaubid2254]

You’re just breaking that poor rice poling like that! Now here’s a seasoned ricer. Michaa Aubid

[@nevillesavage2012]

With that dance in those shorts it is wild rice with vruhmunda cheese

[@brendatenorio5721]

Protect product like French protects its regional products

[@readpostcard]

Love this stuff. Use it in stuffing after it is cooked or just with some butter on it

[@grovermartin6874]

One year we planted this in our pond, which had 5 springs feeding it. It grew, all right, but the wood ducks loved it. How is it that the ducks of Minnesota leave enough for their Ogibwe family?

[@jamieblack3235]

Enough grows to feed the birds and the people. Birds have enough other foods to eat, enough predators to keep bird population controlled, and enough bodies of water for lots of rice plants to grow.

[@grovermartin6874]

@@jamieblack3235 Ah, yes. I've heard of "the economy of scale," but didn't think of it in terms of this magical, nurturing seed!

[@Hans-iq3fn]

Because the people are eating the ducks too. That’s what he was talking about not using lead bullets over the lake. When the rice is ready it’s double harvest time for food.

[@LaineyBug2020]

This stuff really is a miracle food. It's not technically a grain, but the seed of marsh grass. It's many times over more nutrient dense than rice, low glycemic, improves insulin resistance and is anti inflammatory. It's a really good replacement for people with grain restricted diets. The texture may take some getting used to, but the nutty flavor, especially if you toast it first, is amazing! It's also about as non gmo as you can get! Ive always wanted a plot of land with some marshlands and ponds where I could grow this and cattails and be able to catch my own fish as part of my homestead!

[@benblakemore4195]

WOOOWWWW AWSOME! ! THANKYOU FOR THESE GREAT STORIES BUSINESS INSIDER 😉😉😉😉

[@nothing-b2n]

Oh you know it....yummy

[@pangabuhikangmangunguma2978]

Hopefully it's all organic and they should prevent someone from introducing pesticide and inorganic fertilizer there .

[@meilih2030]

wild rice is super expensive because we don't have it. If it's in your country it's very cheap for you. but if we buy that it's very expensive since it is converted to pesos. It's a few thousands here.

[@mayandas9581]

Nice.material

[@3coins.]

Louisiana also has lots of different kinds of rice.

[@doggodoggo3000]

the mississippi river runs all the way to minnesotta. That type of rice grows on the river actually so people are harvesting that wild rice on that same river.

[@Petersonmgee]

I just bought some on Amazon