"Noble" Kava powders and extracts

[Kalm with Kava]

With the increased importance, awareness, and demand of Noble Kava cultivars, more and more companies have been touting their products as Noble - most notably declaring a "Noble Chemotype". I wanted to add a little of my experience with the issue.

First off a "Noble chemotype" means nothing when we're talking about mixed kavas other than it's less than 50% Tudei. Simple math will show if you mix 49% of Tudei with an example chemotype of 256431 (a prevalent Tudei in Vanuatu known as Vabu) and 51% of a Noble cultivar with an example chemotype of 426351, the result will be a "Noble chemotype" of something like 246531. Mix at 30:70 and you could even get a chemotype of 426531. This is what knowledgeable and unscrupulous suppliers are currently doing and labeling the products as "Noble" from the chemotype. Chemotype alone can only verify a kava if it is a single cultivar. Unfortunately this is not the case for most of what comes out of kava producing islands. Kava gardens usually have many different varieties all growing together and will be sold as a blend of these varieties. Add on the fact that some overseas extract companies have noticed the buyers desire for Noble and they will go to the lengths of manipulating extract methods to produce the chemotype they desire since each kavalactone responds at different pressure/temperature.

Example: I just received this email today and have confirmed with a couple other vendors that they received it as well:

They even included an image ripped off of our own website! And COA which I have to believe is fraudulent as well.

This information isn't to promote True Kava or us as a vendor, rather to give some insight into what is currently happening in the kava world. Kava is being considered a quick cash cow to many companies and has already surpassed the levels at which we started seeing problems back in the late 90s when terrible products were being sold. The good news is we have groups like this now and we can try to stop it before it gets out of hand. I believe Vendors who participate in this forum know their stuff and for the most part offer really good products but if you come across some weird new vendor or product, be sure to quiz them on their kava knowledge and educate them if need be. It really comes down to the longevity of us all enjoying our beloved root drink for years to come.

 

[TheKavaSociety]

My favourite example of questionable marketing. The "all natural" co2 extracts from China:

 

[verticity]

My favourite example of questionable marketing. The "all natural" co2 extracts from China:

View attachment 7131

How are the extracts not "all natural"? (I think they are alcohol extracts, actually).
Well I guess the maltodextrin and stuff is not natural...never mind

 

[Kava Time]

I dont want to be pointing fingers but just wana share my experience here. i had a chinese kava buyer approach me and he asked for the price i can export kava to him for. When he heard my price he said thank you and mentioned that he will get it for 15 usd per kilo. With 15 usd per kilo the only feasible part of kava an exporter would send is the lawena and branch peelings. Not even branches are worth the price he offered. @kasa_balavu can vouch for this. im sure he must have found someone willing to supply him kava for that price and he was in need of about a tonne every month. when @Henry mentions on the forum about peelings n branches n stuff he isnt kidding. i as a kava vendor and kava processor based in fiji i can vouch for this. although im not so certain about cement powder being mixed with kava, i have seen with my own eyes the following being mixed with kava to lower cost - sugar, flour, milk powder, rice flour, branches, peelings, and rotting molded kava maybe 2 o 3 yrs old.

At the current price of fijian waka atleast, if you are getting medium grind powder from anywhere between 30 - 35 usd per pound range then it is 100% mixed with peelings and branches to lower costs.
If you are getting it between 39 - 46 range it probably contains more lawena than roots or possibly contains Vanuatu strains if it seems potent. There is a small probability of it containing peelings or atleast unpeeled lawena's which has become quite the norm in fiji now because farmers are making too much money to be bothered to peel their lawena's.
If you are getting waka over 46 than it maybe the real stuff depending on your vendors operating costs. Think about inbound shipping costs (average $4-5 per pound), taxes (6 -10%), transaction fees (3-5%), Labor costs and profit margins (10 - 25% depending on scale).

With lawena its a different case you can get good peeled lawena for around 37 - 45 again depending on your vendors operating costs. You can tell a good peeled lawena powder being sold by looking at its color. See image below. Thats what the usual color of a peeled lawena beverage will look like - very light yellow makes you just wanna drink 24/7 color


Alot of people maybe wondering how can you tell if kava has been mixed with fillers like branches and peelings etc. Thankfully if the powder contains a majority percentage of peelings and branches there is a way to identify this.
If it contains unpeeled branches - the powder will be slightly darker in color. by darker i mean weighing towards greyish black/green dark colors. Some kavas are darker in color too but they mostly lean towards reddish dark colors..the beverage color will be along the same color (NOTE: IM ONLY TALKING ABOUT FIJIAN KAVAS)
if it contains peeled branches it will be slightly weaker in potency compared to the same variety quality root sold by other quality vendors (less of the sludge would come out depending on how viciously you prep the traditional way)
If it contains alot of peelings it will be even more weaker in potency and also the color of the powder will lean toward greyish black/green dark colors

I cant really help with taste part but i would imagine the low grade stuff will taste horrible..with quality kava's you will have a pleasant experience depending on how you prep. I have noted many people use stockings...i wouldnt use that..i use a double layered silk cloth to ensure no makas gets through to my kava making it a very pleasant drinking experience. I dont like to drink chalky kava because it messes with the throat and i have felt that if you dont filter the makas properly it can alter the taste too. I would never try micro in that sense.

 

[Deleted User01]

And here is the bottom line. In the 1990s and early 2000s, they documented several cases of consumers having severe liver problems and it was tracked down to a bad kava extracts. In those days, there was a ton of extracts coming from China and it was thought that many manufacturers were using the aerial parts of the kava to create them. I hope kava doesn't start to enjoy the level of popularity it had in the 1990s because if that starts up again, and combined with the current kava shortage, it is a recipe for another disaster.

 

[Kalm with Kava]

Well, this just got alot more serious! Here is a request we received today from a Chinese herbal manufacturing company requesting kava leaves. I have blacked out the companies information until they respond to my request on what the kava leaves would be used for but from their site they claim they are a cGMP supplement manufacturing facility.

 

[Deleted User01]

Ok, that is exactly the crap that put kava in the toilet (keep the analogy going) in the 1990s. Kava leaves can actual be poisonous and I doubt they have much if any Kavalactones in them. And so this is why people get irked everytime they see China and Kava uttered in the same breath. So yeah, everytime someone says Kava and China then: "Lucy, you have a lot of susplaining to do".

 

[moff000]

Very worrying...... These people run the risk of putting kava back on the map but for all the wrong reasons.......

 

[Zac Imiola (Herbalist)]

Wtf lol

 

[Deleted User01]

@Kalm with Kava, you can report your findings to the American Kava Association. They have a watch dog tab for that. I wished they had a list of members.

 

[verticity]

Well, this just got alot more serious! Here is a request we received today from a Chinese herbal manufacturing company requesting kava leaves. I have blacked out the companies information until they respond to my request on what the kava leaves would be used for but from their site they claim they are a cGMP supplement manufacturing facility.
View attachment 7142

There is no legitimate use for leaves. They might be thinking that since the leaves do contain kavalactones, they could isolate and purify the kavalactones from the leaves. That would be a way to make pure kavalactones. If the request were from a chemical standards manufacturer, that might be legit. But from a "herbal manufacturer", um:

 

[The Kap'n]

Being Chinese, English may not be their first language. Here's to hoping they meant "roots" instead of "leaves"

 

[Kavashua]

Being Chinese, English may not be their first language. Here's to hoping they meant "roots" instead of "leaves"

I thought the same thing. Although I remain sceptical Engrish does go in crazy directions

 

[verticity]

Being Chinese, English may not be their first language. Here's to hoping they meant "roots" instead of "leaves"

I doubt it. I mean English certainly not their first language. But their English is good enough to construct grammatical sentences, so it seems unlikely the word "leaves" is not what they intended. It seems to me there are two possibilities.
(1) Being Chinese, they assume that something used to make a kind of "tea" must use the leaves of the plant. i.e., they are ignorant, or
(2) They know that kava is made from roots, but roots are expensive, so they are trying to get some cheap material to make "kava" with; i.e. they are unscrupulous.

 

[Kalm with Kava]

I'm almost certain they are specifically sourcing leaves. For what use, that's to be determined once they reply but their company specifically manufactures & sells herbal supplements for human consumption.

The reason I'm almost certain they're sourcing specifically leaves (and probably stalks as well) would be from the screenshot on my first post of another company that contacted us for sale of their extract yesterday.

Despite the obvious errors of "Noble Hawaiian" & "Grown on a pacific island where pesticides are banned" $12.50/kg is completely unrealistic for Noble Kava and really even Tudei Kava. The farm price of Noble kava currently is at the very least 3-5x times that without processing or extraction. To be able and sell any "kava" at that price it would almost certainly have to be 100% stalks and leaves.

 

[verticity]

I just found this listing on Alibaba:

(Please see the Friday thread for the "frightened cat" reaction meme)

 

[verticity]

...
Despite the obvious errors of "Noble Hawaiian" & "Grown on a pacific island where pesticides are banned" ...

LOL. Right, your point being pesticides are not banned on Hawaii, so both of those claims can't be true.

 

[sɥɐʞɐs]

LOL. Right, your point being pesticides are not banned on Hawaii, so both of those claims can't be true.

...and also, Hawai'i isn't in the South Pacific. (which is what the actual snippet said)
It's actually closer to Alaska than it is to Vanuatu...crazy huh

 

[verticity]

...and also, Hawai'i isn't in the South Pacific. (which is what the actual snippet said)
It's actually closer to Alaska than Vanuatu...crazy huh View attachment 7155

Are you sure about that? I thought Hawaii was in Melanesia.

 

[verticity]

...and also, Hawai'i isn't in the South Pacific. (which is what the actual snippet said)
It's actually closer to Alaska than Vanuatu...crazy huh View attachment 7155