Hidden Gems: Meet Ruth Mulligan of Elderberry Syrup by Ruth

Today we’d like to introduce you to Ruth Mulligan.

Alright, so thank you so much for sharing your story and insight with our readers. To kick things off, can you tell us a bit about how you got started?
I grew up in Germany, where elderberries literally grow everywhere, and there is an abundance of them. 

I came to the US in 2006. And when my daughter started going to preschool in 2013 and came home sick all the time, I started making elderberry syrup again for my family. I dug out my old family recipe that I had forgotten about for a little while. 

When the flu was going rampage in 2018, and I had an extra jar of syrup, I posted it for sale on Facebook. I had one jar, and 20 people wanted it! The next time I made syrup for my family, I doubled my recipe and sold three jars to other people. It snowballed from there, and I was selling elderberry syrup out of the back of my car in various store parking lots on a daily basis lol. That’s when I made it official. 

You can now find our syrup in 60+ stores in North and South Carolina! 

We are proud to say that we still use our tried-and-true family recipe that has been perfected for the last 75+ years. We use only certified organic ingredients. No preservatives or additives. Small batch produced. 

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Getting my product into bigger chain stores has not been very easy. It took persistency and hard work to get my syrup into bigger stores. That was and still is my biggest challenge. 

Thanks – so what else should our readers know about Elderberry Syrup by Ruth?
We make elderberry syrup, elderberry tea blends, elderberry honey, and elderberry cocoa. We only use 100% organically sourced ingredients. Our products are free from artificial ingredients, preservatives, thickeners, you name it. We are using a family recipe that has been in our family for over 80 years! We have been in business since 2018. You can find our syrup in 60+ store in North and South Carolina. Lowe’s Foods is our biggest retailer, and we are proud to be found in their local & cold and flu medicine section. We still produce small, handcrafted batches in our own certified building/kitchen. No other products are produced in that kitchen, so there is no cross-contamination with other products or allergens. 

Who else deserves credit in your story?
My husband John, who I have been married to for almost 16 years, is my biggest supporter and cheerleader. He encourages me daily and has been helping me since day one. I certainly couldn’t run my business without his help! My 3 children definitely influence my drive to work hard and spread health. They love my elderberry syrup, and they are prove that it really works! They don’t get sick often, and when they do, it’s never more than a short-lived sniffle. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.elderberrysyrupbyruth.com
• Instagram: instagram.com/elderberrysyrupbyruth
• Facebook: facebook.com/elderberrysyrupbyruth