Ethanol (ethyl alcohol) is the same alcohol found in alcoholic beverages, except that the purity is much higher since it is pharmaceutical grade. Ethanol is commonly used in herbal preparations as a means to extract the desirable active constituents.

The extract is made by initially mixing the plant with ethanol (a process which results in a concentrated liquid supply of the desired active constituent). The liquid portion is then separated from the plant matter (the cellulose and plant parts do not dissolve and are removed), and either used in fluid extracts, OR are processed even further (filtered, spray-dried) to produce a standardized powdered extract product which is used in capsules. The final drying process causes the ethanol to evaporate and the resulting product is the concentrated active constituent without the ethanol.

Oregon Wild Harvest has chosen certified organic ethanol as the extraction solvent used in many of our products for the following reasons.

Ethanol is the safest solvent available for extraction purposes. Other solvents used to make standardized extracts include harsh synthetic chemicals such as acetone, hexane or carbon tetrachloride (there is no complete guarantee that these chemicals are ever completely removed). Dietary supplement manufacturers are not required to test for any trace of chemical residue remaining after the drying process. Additionally, they are not required to disclose the solvent on the label. We have opted to volunteer this information to our customers, which can be found by referring to our capsules manufactured with standardized extracts.

Ethanol is very easily removed by evaporation. However, should any ethanol remain on the powdered extract, we can be assured that this residual portion has no harmful side effects, as found with other solvents.

Ethanol is derived from grain, and conventionally grown grain may contain genetically modified corn containing the Bt gene. Strict labeling and segregation ensures that the certified organic ethanol we use is not made from any genetically modified organisms, more commonly referred to as GMO’s.