Boswellia Extract
Boswellia extract is a concentrate of the gum oleoresin tapped from trees of the genus Boswellia in the Burseraceae family, the same resin traded through history as frankincense or olibanum. Four species supply the market: Boswellia serrata from India, Boswellia sacra from Oman and Yemen, Boswellia carterii and Boswellia frereana from Somalia and the Horn of Africa, and Boswellia papyrifera from Ethiopia and Eritrea, and their resins differ enough in composition that the species is part of the specification rather than a detail.
The resin is a three part material. A gum polysaccharide fraction, insoluble in alcohol, makes up roughly a third of the crude tears. A volatile oil fraction, rich in alpha pinene, alpha thujene, octyl acetate and incensole in some species, carries the balsamic citrus aroma. Between them sits the alcohol soluble resin fraction containing the pentacyclic triterpene acids known as boswellic acids, which is what a supplement extract concentrates.
Commercial extract is an off white to light brown powder with a faint balsamic odour and slightly bitter taste. Boswellic acids are lipophilic acids, practically insoluble in water and soluble in ethanol, oils and dilute alkali, so the powder is filled into capsules, dispersed in an oil phase, or sold as a phospholipid or cyclodextrin complex where a water miscible form is needed.
We source bulk Boswellia Extract from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Shaanxi. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
or call +86-21-6858 0751
- Function
- Plant extract
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Off white to light brown fine powder |
| Botanical Source | Boswellia gum oleoresin, species as declared |
| Odour and Taste | Faint balsamic odour, slightly bitter |
| Identification | HPLC profile conforming to species reference chromatogram |
| Total Boswellic Acids | ≥ 65.0% (HPLC) |
| Acetyl 11 Keto Beta Boswellic Acid | ≥ 5.0% (HPLC) |
| Volatile Oil | ≤ 2.0% |
| Particle Size | ≥ 95% through 80 mesh |
| Loss on Drying | ≤ 5.0% |
| Total Ash | ≤ 3.0% |
| Residual Ethanol | ≤ 0.5% |
| Lead | ≤ 2.0 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | ≤ 1.0 mg/kg |
| Cadmium | ≤ 1.0 mg/kg |
| Total Plate Count | ≤ 5,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and Mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
| Escherichia coli | Negative in 1 g |
| Salmonella | Negative in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Extract grades are quoted either on total boswellic acids, commonly 65, 70, 75 and 90 percent, or on acetyl 11 keto beta boswellic acid by HPLC at 5, 10, 20 and 30 percent, and the two conventions are not interchangeable. Where the resin is bought for aroma rather than for triterpene content, the trade instead supplies steam distilled frankincense essential oil and solvent extracted resinoid and absolute, specified on odour profile and volatile composition.
Species and grade of the crude resin sit behind all of these. Hand sorted first grade tears command a premium over the darker, bark contaminated lower grades, and Boswellia papyrifera resin is notably different in triterpene profile from the Indian material, so an extract made from it will not meet a serrata based specification. Powders are sold carrier free or on maltodextrin, at 80 mesh, with granulated and micronised versions. Sustainability documentation has become part of the specification for the African and Arabian species, several of which are under pressure from over tapping.
Applications
- Joint comfort supplements, the largest supplement outlet, dosed on the declared boswellic acid figure
- Multi botanical formulations combining the extract with curcuminoids, collagen peptides or glucosamine sources
- Softgels and oil filled capsules, which suit the lipophilic triterpene acids
- Topical creams, gels and massage balms applied over joints and muscles
- Fine fragrance and incense compounding, using the essential oil and resinoid for the balsamic citrus note
- Aromatherapy and diffuser blends, a long established outlet for the distilled oil
- Skin care serums and anti ageing creams, formulated with the resin extract or its oil
- Oral care and gum health products, where the resin has a traditional position
- Pet joint supplements, particularly for dogs and horses
Brands Using Boswellia Extract
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Boswellia Extract on the ingredient label.
- Nature's AnswerBoswellia Extract Veggie Capsules ↗Each serving supplies 400 mg of Boswellia serrata extract standardised to 70 percent boswellic acid.Label verified 2026-08-31
- Double Wood SupplementsBoswellia Extract Capsules ↗A two-capsule serving lists 1,000 mg of boswellia extract standardised to 65 percent boswellic acid.Label verified 2026-08-31
Brand names, product names and logos are the property of their owners. They appear here as published evidence that the ingredient is used, taken from the brand's own label or website. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and it does not mean the brand buys from us or from any manufacturer listed on this site.
China Manufacturers of Boswellia Extract
Top Boswellia Extract manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
In the United States, boswellia gum resin and its extracts are used as dietary ingredients under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, with finished products manufactured under 21 CFR Part 111. Olibanum and frankincense preparations are recognised as natural flavouring substances and are listed by the Flavour and Extract Manufacturers Association as generally recognised as safe flavouring materials, and specific boswellia extracts have been the subject of generally recognised as safe determinations for defined food applications.
In the European Union boswellia is not an authorised food additive, so no E number applies. Olibanum is used as a flavouring preparation under the flavourings regulation, while the concentrated triterpene extract is handled as a food supplement ingredient whose acceptability is decided at member state level, with health claims for the genus unauthorised. Preparations concentrated far beyond the composition of the traditional resin, or made by processes without a history of use in the Union, come within the scope of the novel food regulation. Several Boswellia species are the subject of conservation concern and are listed by the International Union for Conservation of Nature, so buyers increasingly require documented sustainable tapping. Codex has no commodity standard for the material and JECFA has issued no additive specification for it.
Manufacturing Process
Resin is tapped by cutting shallow incisions in the bark and allowing the exudate to harden into tears over several weeks before collection. Collected tears are hand sorted to remove bark, sand and darker grades, then graded by colour and size. For an aroma product the sorted resin is steam distilled, giving the essential oil and an aqueous distillate, or extracted with a hydrocarbon solvent to a resinoid that is further processed with ethanol into an absolute.
For a triterpene extract the resin is chilled and milled, since it softens at ambient temperature, and extracted with ethanol or ethyl acetate, which dissolve the resin acids while leaving the gum polysaccharide as an insoluble residue. The miscella is filtered, concentrated under vacuum with solvent recovery, and stripped of volatile oil. Where a defined acetyl 11 keto beta boswellic acid figure is required, the concentrate is purified further by selective crystallisation, by alkali partition that carries the acids into an aqueous phase and returns them on acidification, or by column chromatography for the highest assays. The solid is vacuum dried, milled, sieved, assayed and packed in food grade liners inside fibre drums.
