How Plant Powders Are Made

In forms like extracts, oils and powders, plants have always been incorporated in skincare. For instance, rose is popular for being antibacterial, anti-inflammatory, and having antioxidants—usually infused in products meant to fight acne, reduce redness, boost moisture in skin. Orange is added for it’s richness in vitamin C which helps to even out your skin tone, and aloe vera is a known healing plant.

There’s also ginger root which can help stimulate blood circulation, and pine bark extract with it’s ability to increase hydration and elasticity of skin. So, it’s clear that when used in the right way, plants can do wonders for our skin!

For today’s blog post, we’ll be talking about how plant powders—one of the forms in which plants are incorporated into skincare—are made. Like how there is a variety of plant powders, there’s also a few ways to produce them.

~ * ~

1. Grinding into Fine Powder

Powders like green tea powder, mint powder and moringa leaf powder are made using the leaves of their plant which has been dried and then, ground into fine powders. This is also how some ginger root powders, flower powders (like lavender, rose, calendula, etc.) and a few others are made.

2. Starch Production

Certain plant powders like arrowroot powder are actually starch. These plant powders are made by separating the starch from plant root which has been cut and mashed into pulp. This pulp is strained through a screen to obtain fine starch which is then, dried and ground into fine powder.

3. Spray Drying

While some powders like lemon powder and beetroot powder can be made by grinding the rind (for lemon) or the entire root (for beetroot), there’s another way for these powders to be made and that’s spray drying. This process involves spraying concentrated fruit juice in a chamber with hot air, allowing the droplets to dry before the dried particles are separated and filtered. Some of Craftiviti’s plant powders that are created through this process are Organic Lemon Powder, Organic Strawberry Powder and Organic Mango Powder.

~ * ~

Among the three, it can be said that plant powders made using the spray drying and grinding processes would hold the most nutrients and are therefore, more beneficial to us. However, this doesn’t mean that plants powders that are essentially starch, aren’t beneficial at all. All plant powders have their own pros and cons. So, depending on which formulation they’re incorporated in, they can either give your DIY personal care products a boost, or not.

---

Thanks for reading! We hope this helps