Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract
Phaeodactylum tricornutum extract is a preparation obtained from the biomass of a marine pennate diatom of the same name, one of the few microalgae grown industrially in photobioreactors. The organism is unusual among diatoms in tolerating low silicate media and in accumulating both the xanthophyll pigment fucoxanthin and the long chain omega-3 fatty acid eicosapentaenoic acid. Commercial extracts are built on one or other of these fractions.
The fucoxanthin fraction is a deep orange brown carotenoid with a distinctive allenic bond and an epoxide group, and it is the constituent that defines pigment grade extracts. The lipid fraction is a golden algal oil rich in eicosapentaenoic acid, offered as a non-fish source of that fatty acid. Polar extracts of the same biomass carry chrysolaminarin, a beta-1,3 glucan, together with peptides and mycosporine like amino acids that are used in cosmetics.
Fucoxanthin grades are oily to waxy dark orange concentrates or dark powders, oil soluble and practically insoluble in water, and are dispersed in vegetable oil or emulsified for aqueous use. The carotenoid is sensitive to light, oxygen and heat above about 60 degrees Celsius, so material is filled under nitrogen in light resistant packaging and formulated with an antioxidant.
We source bulk Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Zhejiang. 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 | Dark orange brown oily concentrate |
| Odour | Characteristic marine algal, no rancid note |
| Fucoxanthin (HPLC) | ≥ 10.0% |
| Total Carotenoids | ≥ 12.0% |
| Identification | Conforms by HPLC and UV-visible spectrum |
| Peroxide Value | ≤ 5.0 meq/kg |
| Moisture | ≤ 1.0% |
| Total Ash | ≤ 2.0% |
| Residual Ethanol | ≤ 0.5% |
| Lead | ≤ 1.0 mg/kg |
| Arsenic (inorganic) | ≤ 1.0 mg/kg |
| Cadmium | ≤ 1.0 mg/kg |
| Mercury | ≤ 0.1 mg/kg |
| Total Plate Count | ≤ 10,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and Mould | ≤ 100 cfu/g |
| E. coli | Negative |
| Salmonella | Absent in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Three families are traded. Fucoxanthin standardised extracts run from 1 and 5 percent oil dispersions up to 10 and 20 percent concentrates, with purified fucoxanthin above 90 percent produced for reference and high dose supplement use. Algal oil grades are quoted on eicosapentaenoic acid content, commonly 20 to 40 percent of total fatty acids, with peroxide and anisidine values stated because the polyunsaturated chains oxidise readily. Whole biomass grades are sold as a dried powder with protein, lipid and pigment content declared.
Cosmetic grades are aqueous or glycol liquid extracts at 1 to 5 percent solids, standardised on total polysaccharide or on a peptide marker rather than on fucoxanthin. Across all grades the production system is part of the specification, since closed photobioreactor material carries a different contaminant and microbiological profile from open pond biomass, and heavy metal limits matter because marine algae concentrate cadmium and arsenic.
Applications
- Dietary supplements in softgel and capsule form standardised on fucoxanthin content
- Weight management formulations, the largest supplement outlet for fucoxanthin rich extracts
- Vegetarian and vegan omega-3 supplements, using the algal oil as a non-fish source of eicosapentaenoic acid
- Functional foods and beverages fortified with algal omega-3, dosed as a microencapsulated powder
- Infant and clinical nutrition, where a controlled non-marine-fish lipid source is preferred
- Skin care serums and creams, formulated on the polysaccharide and mycosporine like amino acid fraction
- Sun care and anti-pollution cosmetics, using the pigment and antioxidant fractions
- Aquaculture hatchery feeds, where the whole biomass is a standard live or paste feed for bivalve and shrimp larvae
- Natural colour applications, where the carotenoid contributes an orange brown shade in oil based systems
Brands Using Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract
Widely-distributed consumer products that list Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract on the ingredient label.
- MuradHeartleaf Calming Cream ↗Murad's Heartleaf Calming Cream lists Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract in its ingredient list alongside houttuynia cordata extract and ceramide NP.Label verified 2026-08-31
- MuradHeartleaf Gentle Resurfacing Serum ↗This glycolic acid serum for sensitive skin names Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract in its ingredient list after ceramide NP.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 Phaeodactylum Tricornutum Extract
Top Phaeodactylum Tricornutum 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 extracts of Phaeodactylum tricornutum are used as dietary ingredients, and algal oils of this type have been the subject of GRAS notices to the Food and Drug Administration for defined food uses, to which the agency responded without objection. Fucoxanthin itself has no colour additive listing, so it cannot be used to give colour to food in the United States, and its use is confined to supplement and nutrient applications. Cosmetic use falls under the general safety provisions of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act.
In the European Union the microalga and its extracts fall under Regulation 2015/2283 on novel foods, since Phaeodactylum tricornutum has no significant history of consumption in the Union before May 1997. Authorisations in this area are granted for a specific preparation, producer process and set of food categories, so market access depends on holding or relying on the applicable authorisation rather than on the species being generally permitted. The material has no E number and is not an authorised food colour. Regulation 1223/2009 governs cosmetic use. Codex has no commodity standard for microalgal extracts, and JECFA has not evaluated fucoxanthin.
Manufacturing Process
The diatom is cultivated in closed tubular or flat panel photobioreactors on a filtered seawater or synthetic marine medium supplemented with nitrate, phosphate and trace metals, under controlled light, temperature and carbon dioxide supply. Nitrogen limitation late in the run shifts the cells toward lipid accumulation, while higher light and nutrient replete conditions favour pigment. Culture is harvested continuously or in batches at the end of the growth phase.
Biomass is concentrated by centrifugation or membrane filtration to a paste, then washed to remove sea salts and either spray dried or held wet. Cell walls are broken by bead milling or high pressure homogenisation, since the intact frustule limits extraction yield. Fucoxanthin and lipid are recovered together by extraction with ethanol or with supercritical carbon dioxide, the solvent removed under vacuum at low temperature, and the crude oleoresin fractionated on an adsorption resin or by preparative chromatography to raise the carotenoid assay. Algal oil is refined, winterised and deodorised under vacuum. Finished material is standardised, stabilised with tocopherols and filled under nitrogen.
