Local farm a leading producer of flu-fighting elderberry

Norm's Farms in Pittsboro produces thousands of bottles of elderberry extract each year.

"Cloves help kill a little bit of the pain, and elderberry is an anti-inflammatory.," said Rodger Lenhardt.

Lenhardt has also been a farmer, following the footsteps of his father, Norm.

"We produce tens of thousands of bottles of this stuff every year," Lenhardt said.

"We put our stuff in a like a BBQ sauce bottle, 11 ounces. We sold it for 17 bucks, sold everything we made. You know there might be something here," Lenhardt said.

"We got people like Oprah writing about it. Dr. Oz tells people it's the best thing you can do to prevent flu and cold," Lenhardt said. "I think the trend today, people are really, really trying to pay attention about what they're putting in their bodies."

Some university studies say the antioxidant properties of elderberry extract can shorten cold and flu symptoms, at least based on randomized testing.

Some medical professionals aren't sold on it as treatment method, especially compared to a flu shot.

"I spoke with an infectious disease specialist, [and] they've heard no science behind it being beneficial," said WRAL's Dr. Allen Mask.

Elderberry can have a high price tag. An 8-ounce bottle at Whole Foods goes for around $20.