Quality control raw material testing
KP herb purchasers buy only the freshest, finest herbs available from the People’s Republic of China. Herb conformity and origin is verified by experienced botanists, in Taiwan and in Europe.
KP performs the following methods of authentication on raw herbs:
Appearance:
On-site experts determine the species by the herb’s exterior characteristics, including colour size, scent and texture.
Microscopic analysis:
Laboratories examine the herb under high magnification, including the grain of the herb at cross-sections, the consistency of the herb as powder, its cell shape and its behavior under chemical dissociation.
Physical/chemical identification:
Laboratories determine species under a battery of advanced chemical and physical tests, including appearance under fluorescent light, performance under distillation, results from colour chromatography, spectrometric analysis, loss weight on drying, ash content, percent of insoluble ash in liquid and the amount of extracted water and diluted alcohol extract.
Chemical Fingerprinting:
KP’s quality control divisions make abundant use of chemical fingerprinting methods. Chemical fingerprinting separates chemical components and matches them to standards, enabling species identity matches. The variety and history of Chinese herbs is complex. It would be nearly impossible to accurately and consistently determine the species identity of all herbs without the assistance of chemical fingerprinting techniques. KP has invested heavily in chemical fingerprinting technologies, as it plays a vital role in safety and the future of the herbal industry. KP applies the techniques of Thin-layer chromatography (TLC), High-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC), and Gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC-MS) to authenticate the species identity of herbs.