By Donwynne and Amy Bergh
People often ask us what's actually in a pack. So here's the full ingredients list, what each ingredient is there for, and how it goes from beef to biltong. If you're after the health side, we've covered that separately in Is biltong healthy?, How much protein is in biltong? and Is biltong processed meat?
The short answer
Our biltong is British beef, apple cider vinegar and a spice blend. Every ingredient is printed on the pack and on each product page.
Original Biltong ingredients
Here's the list from our Original Biltong pack:
British Beef, Apple Cider Vinegar, Spice Blend (Coriander, Sea Salt, Black Pepper, Preservative: Potassium Sorbate, Garlic Powder, Onion Powder, Smoked Umami Powder (Maltodextrin, Smoked Yeast Extract, Smoked Mushroom Powder)).
What each ingredient is there for
- British beef. 100% pasture-fed British beef from Farm Wilder farms. It's most of what's in the pack: each 35g pack starts as about 80g of raw beef.
- Apple cider vinegar. Part of the traditional cure. It gives biltong its gentle tang.
- Coriander, sea salt and black pepper. The classic biltong flavours. The salt is also part of the cure.
- Garlic and onion powder. For a rounder, savoury flavour.
- Smoked umami powder. A small amount of maltodextrin, smoked yeast extract and smoked mushroom powder, for depth. Smoked yeast extract isn't MSG, and we don't add MSG.
- Potassium sorbate. A preservative. It's in the spice blend, so it's on the label.
We don't add sugars.
Our other flavours and beef sticks
Garlic & Black Pepper, Chilli and Cape Curry use the same beef and vinegar, with their own spice blends. You'll find each full list on its product page and pack.
Our Original Beef Sticks use the same ingredients as our Original Biltong, made as a droëwors-style stick rather than sliced. Biltong, droewors and beef sticks explains the difference.
Allergens and gluten
Cape Curry contains mustard and celery. Always check the pack for full allergen information. All our products are gluten free.
How it's made
- The beef. It comes from Farm Wilder farms across South West England, where the cattle are 100% pasture-fed.
- The marinade. The beef is marinated overnight in apple cider vinegar and the spice blend.
- The drying. It's air-dried for about a week. It isn't cooked, and it isn't raw either: Is biltong raw? explains why.
- Slicing and packing. It's sliced and packed into 35g packs.
It's made in the UK by our specialist production partner, to our recipe and our spice specifications. What is biltong? has the longer story of where the method comes from.
Nutrition at a glance
The figures come from lab testing of our products. Per-pack values are worked out from the per-100g figures. All four biltong flavours share the same figures.
| Typical values | Biltong per 100g | Biltong per 35g pack | Beef sticks per 100g | Beef sticks per 40g pack |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Energy | 310kcal | 109kcal | 483kcal | 193kcal |
| Fat | 9.7g | 3.4g | 35.3g | 14.1g |
| of which saturates | 4.2g | 1.5g | 18g | 7.2g |
| Carbohydrate | 1.7g | 0.6g | 2.8g | 1.1g |
| of which sugars | 1.5g | 0.5g | 0.2g | 0.1g |
| Protein | 53.7g | 18.8g | 38.3g | 15.3g |
| Salt | 2.7g | 0.9g | 2.4g | 1.0g |
No added sugars*. *Contains naturally occurring sugars.
What those numbers mean for protein, salt and diets is covered in How much protein is in biltong?, Is biltong healthy? and Biltong for weight loss and keto.
Storage and shelf life
Keep in a cool, dry place out of direct sunlight. Store ambient. Unopened packs have a shelf life of 12 months from packing, and the best-before date is on every pack. Once opened, eat within 24 hours. There's more in How to store biltong.
Where the beef comes from
All our beef comes from Farm Wilder farms across South West England: 100% pasture-fed British beef, from farms certified to Farm Wilder's Regenerative Standards. Farm Wilder audits each farm in-house every two years, against standards developed with FWAG South West. Read why we chose Farm Wilder beef, or see our Our Beef page.
Find your flavour
Each flavour comes in packs of 6 (£24.99) or 12 (£44.99). Try them all in The Whole Herd mixed 6-pack for £24.99, or browse all our biltong and beef sticks. Delivery is free on orders over £65.