Ox Gallstones Moldova – A Precious Chinese Herbal Medicine

Gallstones that form in the gallbladder of cattle are a precious Chinese herbal medicine. They can be sold in their natural form or as an ingredient for a variety of proprietary Chinese medicines.

They are in short supply and have high value. The price of ox gallstones Moldova depends on the dryness, size and colour.

Origin

For cattle breeders and meat workers alike, ox gallstones Moldova are a big deal. These are small, spherical stones containing calcium salts and bilirubin that form in the gallbladders and ducts of cattle.

They are typically retrieved during the abattoir process of extracting bile from a cow or ox. The ox gallstone has been around for a long time, but the modern processing techniques have made it much more practical to harvest these small but precious gems from a herd of cattle.

The most common type of ox gallstone is the cholesterol stone, which accounts for about 80 percent of the total gallstone volume. The best part is that they are a relatively inexpensive source of cholesterol to feed to livestock.

As a result, the ox gallstone has a sizable export potential. Beef processing plants can make a handsome profit in the process of extracting and drying the tiny gems. The best part is that there are plenty of reputable buyers out there to take advantage of this opportunity. The name of the game is finding and securing the best deal. The good news is that the world is a pretty big place. So, if you’re looking for a nice quality ox gallstone and the best price for your buck, then look no further!

Quality

The frenzied reaction to Monday’s VICE story that a gutty at an abattoir in southeast Queensland had been caught plundering gallstones from the lockbox at the kill floor has prompted some people to believe that processors are making a fortune from these precious stones at the expense of beef producers. But it isn’t quite so simple.

Ox gallstones are a byproduct of the meat-processing industry, but they’re also a precious commodity in their own right. They’re used in a variety of Asian alternate medicines, and are in high demand as a result of their antioxidant properties.

They are mainly made up of cholesterol, but are sometimes also a combination of bilirubin and calcium salts. The value of ox gallstones depends on their dryness, colour, texture and size. Whole, smooth, lustrous, golden specimens command the highest prices. Dark and pitted ones, with a whitish coating of calcium inclusions, are worth much less.

Buying and selling of cattle gallstones is often carried out online via darknet marketplaces or private Facebook groups, with the stones usually being sourced from farmers and butchers around the world who are desperate for them. They’re then shipped off to buyers abroad, ideally wrapped in tissues and nestled inside egg cartons or biscuit tins.

These precautions are a necessity for gallstones, as they contain bilirubin that is photosensitive and degenerates in light. And although these measures can appear excessive for a lump of digestive fluid, they’re more than worth the cost in terms of ensuring that each stone reaches its destination intact.

But despite the booming demand for gallstones in the Chinese market, the domestic supply isn’t enough to meet this need. According to a local broker, there’s a shortage of a few metric tons each year, and this has triggered the development of artificial gallstones that are manufactured from chemical ingredients or cultured.

The Chinese government has started to promote bilirubin-based medicinal products, and that’s helped push the price of gallstones up globally. Gerard Murtagh, the Director of International Sales at Sunshine Trading, says he expects gallstone prices to keep rising as long as demand is healthy.

Size

Ox gallstones are a rare kind of mineral found in bile ducts of bovines. The stones can form in several shapes and sizes, ranging from round or egg-shaped to pyramid-shaped.

They can be very small and have a weight of around a grain of sand to as big as a golf ball, according to Paul Daly from the Irish Casing Company. But ox gallstones are in high demand in Asia and are worth more than gold dust.

The price of ox gallstones depends on the shape, size and quality. The most valuable gallstones are large, smooth, lustrous and golden in color.

These are the highest demand stones and can be used for a variety of purposes including acupuncture, herbal medicine and Chinese medicine.

But they can also cause serious health problems when they get stuck in the bile ducts and block them. The buildup of bile causes inflammation and pain that can last from a few minutes to hours.

To relieve the symptoms of cholelithiasis, a heated compress can be applied to the gallbladder area for 10 to 15 minutes. This can be especially helpful if the stones are causing severe pain and inflammation.

However, if the gallstones are not blocking bile ducts, they don’t need to be treated. Medications can help to reduce cholesterol levels and reduce the chances of developing gallstones.

They also relieve gallbladder spasms and pressure by promoting the movement of bile. Other treatments include avoiding spicy foods and drinking plenty of water to remove excess bile.

As a side note, some gallstones can contain traces of bilirubin–an element that is photosensitive and can degenerate in light. Some collectors have a special way of stashing their bilirubin-containing stones in dark storage, to minimise the risk of damage.

Regardless of the precautions taken, ox gallstones are still a very lucrative industry. In China, a single tael of ox gallstones can be worth $65 USD, and there’s a shortage of these precious stones, which are used in a wide range of proprietary Chinese medicines.

A man named Gerard Murtagh in Australia has made the business of buying and selling cattle gallstones into an international monopoly. His family business Sunshine Trading has become a go-to supplier for many of the country’s larger meat processors. He has installed waist-high stainless steel boxes that “secure the gallstones away from sticky fingers”.

Value

A gallstone is a hard crystalline mass formed in the gallbladder or in bile ducts from digestive fluids like bile pigments, calcium and cholesterol. The stones are usually retrieved at an abattoir during the bile extraction phase. They are not used as jewellery but are instead sold as a precious Chinese herbal medicine, either in their natural form or combined with other ingredients as a proprietary Chinese formula.

The value of gallstones depends on the size, quality, their preservation and the texture. They can be worth up to 73 500 USD per kilogram.

Gallstones are a valuable commodity because they contain gold and other minerals, as well as other trace elements. But the stones themselves are relatively rare – not every animal has them, and they are also extremely fragile.

For this reason, most cattle processors do not collect the stones from their animals – instead they sell them to third parties. The gallstones are then dried, sorted and stored in dark rooms in order to avoid them from being damaged.

In recent years, there has been a growing demand for the dark, dry ox gallstones that are so highly prized. The majority of the stones are now being bought from Europe, although they are available at times from ex-soviet states as well.

However, some people are selling their own dark, dry ox gallstones to overseas buyers, often using darknet marketplaces or private Facebook groups. It’s an unregulated industry, so there is no guarantee that the stones will be of good quality or are in fact safe to eat.

Some gallstones can be quite toxic, so it’s important to take extra care when purchasing them from abroad. Ideally the stones should be stored in a dark room with good air circulation, to avoid them being damp or contaminated with other substances.

According to the Australian Department of Agriculture, the amount of ox gallstones that are collected from abattoirs in Australia is relatively small: just 200kg per year. But that doesn’t mean that they aren’t worth something to the meat business.

Sunshine Trading, which has a monopoly on the white market for bovine gallstones in Australia, collects about 200kg of the stuff from more than 50 abattoirs nationwide each year. The company rakes in a profit of some $11.5 million USD a year from the sale of these treasured stones.

Ox Gallstones Moldova – A Precious Chinese Herbal Medicine