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Centella serum OEM/ODM manufacturing
Centella Serum · OEM/ODM
Centella asiatica (gotu kola) is a familiar vegetable and drink in Vietnam and a plant long used in traditional medicine across Asia — that is a cultural story, not evidence of a benefit. What lets centella stand on a cosmetic label is the plant's triterpene group (asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid, madecassic acid) and a handful of human studies, most of them small: in 25 volunteers who applied a cream and a hydrogel containing 2.5% or 5% centella extract to the forearm for 4 weeks, the 5% formulations increased surface hydration and reduced transepidermal water loss more than the 2.5% ones (the study abstract reports no control group). A centella serum developed by Butter-C therefore keeps its claims to two things: soothing and hydrating, for sensitive, easily irritated skin. The formulation challenge lies in the raw material itself: a crude extract, a standardized extract or purified triterpenes differ greatly in color, odor, lot-to-lot consistency and cost. Butter-C offers full-service OEM/ODM manufacturing, from raw material selection and formula development to a labeled finished product with its cosmetic product notification.
Formula base
Choose the form of centella first; everything else follows
The same word “centella” on a label can mean three different raw materials. Each brings a different color, odor, way of dissolving and way of proving content, so this is the first decision in the formula.
Whole centella extract
INCI Centella Asiatica Extract (or Centella Asiatica Leaf Extract, according to the plant part stated in the raw material file). A mixture of triterpene saponins, flavonoids, phenolic acids, amino acids and sugars; marker content varies with plant source and extraction method. Levels tested in humans: 2.5% and 5% in a cream and a hydrogel.
Standardized extract
An extract with declared contents of asiaticoside, madecassoside, asiatic acid and madecassic acid, usually assayed by HPLC. Lack of standardization is a limitation named by the systematic review on centella itself; selecting by marker content keeps the next lot like the last.
Purified triterpenes
Madecassoside, Asiaticoside — defined compounds, low in color, easy to assay. No established cosmetic concentration exists for either compound alone: 0.1% madecassoside is the level tested in humans, but in a formula combined with 5% vitamin C. Both are sourced per project.
The base around centella
Glycerin, Butylene Glycol and Sodium Hyaluronate for hydration; Panthenol and Allantoin for soothing. No fragrance, no essential oils, no exfoliating acids — so centella stays the lead of the ingredient list.
Key technical points
Four things specific to a serum named after centella
When a product carries the name of one ingredient, that ingredient's documentation must be checked rigorously. The four items below are settled before the texture is chosen.
Raw material file
The certificate of analysis (COA) for each lot states the plant part, extraction solvent, marker content, microbiology and heavy metals. With a liquid extract in a water–glycol base, the percentage in the formula is the percentage of the raw material solution, not of dry extract, and the label lists the full INCI of the carrier solvents.
Color, odor and light
Plant extracts darken over time and are sensitive to heat and light; metal ions shift their color. The extract goes in at the cool-down phase, the formula includes the chelator Disodium EDTA, the packaging blocks light, and color is compared with a reference standard at each time point.
Dissolving triterpenes
Madecassoside is hydrophilic and goes into the water phase. Asiaticoside dissolves poorly in both water and oil: solvent and solubility limit follow the supplier's technical data sheet (TDS), with clarity checked after cold cycling. Asiaticoside's sugar chain is attached through an ester bond and can be cleaved to asiatic acid — assay both compounds when declaring content.
The CIR safety condition
The CIR Expert Panel (2023) concluded that 9 centella-derived ingredients, including Centella Asiatica Extract, are safe in the present practices of use and concentration when formulated to be non-sensitizing; cases of allergic contact dermatitis to centella have been reported. Human irritation and sensitization testing is therefore part of the file. The checked sources give no pH or temperature stability data — these are established by stability testing of the finished product itself.
Three formulation directions
Three ways to tell the centella story
Whole-extract centella water serum
Fluid, with the light yellow-brown tint of the extract, absorbs quickly. Tells the “Vietnamese centella” story most fully at a reasonable raw material cost; slight color variation between lots is accepted.
Standardized centella gel-serum
A light, cooling gel texture; an extract with declared markers, optionally with added madecassoside. For brands that want to name the active on the label once the COA proves its content.
Near-colorless triterpene serum
Madecassoside and asiaticoside replace most of the crude extract: a clear solution, little plant odor, consistent content. Higher raw material cost; asiaticoside needs dedicated solubilization.
Packaging designed alongside the formula
Dark glass dropper bottles or light-blocking pump bottles; gaskets and pipettes are soak-tested with the samples. Clear bottles only with a light-blocking carton.
Parameters we monitor
What our R&D lab measures on every sample
Below are the parameters Butter-C monitors during formula development and scale-up to production. Specific limits are agreed with you on the approved sample and then written into the product's in-house specification.
- Sensory profile & color index
- Color, odor, clarity; compared against a reference standard kept in the R&D lab. Extract color is the parameter most prone to drift over time.
- pH
- Measured directly at 25°C; pH drift tracked across stability time points.
- Viscosity
- Measured with a rotational viscometer, recording spindle and speed; tied to the dropper or pump.
- Marker content
- Asiaticoside and madecassoside — plus asiatic acid when asiaticoside is used — assayed by HPLC when the label names the active.
- Low-temperature crystallization
- Held at 4°C and through freeze–thaw cycling; checking for haze or triterpene crystals.
- Incoming plant raw material
- Each lot's COA checked for plant part, markers and heavy metals; microbial testing of the raw material before production.
- Stability
- Accelerated aging at 40°C, freeze–thaw cycling and light exposure; monitoring darkening, odor change and separation.
- Microbiology & preservative challenge
- Tested at a GLP / ISO 17025-accredited laboratory; preservative efficacy (challenge) test according to ISO 11930 — a high-water base containing a plant extract.
- Irritation & sensitization
- Tested on human volunteers before the formula is finalized — the basis for CIR's “non-sensitizing” condition and for any sensitive-skin wording on the label.
Claims
Writing claims within the cosmetic scope
Much centella research sits in a medical wound-care setting, so marketing copy easily slides into that language. A cosmetic serum is used on intact skin and stops at soothing and hydrating. Butter-C reviews the wording on labels and marketing materials while preparing the cosmetic product notification.
Soothes skin, helps ease discomfort
Instead of: reduces inflammation, calms inflamed acne.
Hydrates, helps skin feel less dry and tight
Instead of: repairs damaged skin, regenerates skin.
Contains centella extract, contains madecassoside
Active names and contents only when the COA proves them. Instead of: “cica X%” without saying which raw material.
For sensitive skin
Only after testing on people with sensitive skin. Instead of: non-irritating, gentle because it is natural.
The Vietnamese centella story
Told as culture; raw material origin stated only when the supplier provides proof of origin. Instead of: folk remedy, a substitute for applying fresh centella to the face.
Directions and label notes
Use on intact skin; people who have reacted to herbal cosmetics should test on a small area first. Instead of: heals wounds, fades scars, for use after laser.
Manufacturing specifications
Current capabilities
- Texture
- Water serum, light gel-serum or slightly thickened serum; the natural color of the extract, or near-colorless with purified triterpenes.
- Packaging format
- Dark glass dropper bottles, light-blocking pump bottles. Volume agreed when selecting packaging.
- Minimum order quantity
- Agreed per order — depending on the form of centella and the chosen packaging format.
- Testing
- Performed at a GLP / ISO 17025-accredited laboratory, with marker assay when the label names it; a certificate of analysis delivered with each batch.
- Documentation
- Product Information File (PIF) and cosmetic product notification dossier prepared by Butter-C, including the plant raw material file.
- Packaging
- Label design, printing and packing run in parallel with formula development.
Suggested product concept
Fragrance-free standardized centella serum for sensitive skin
A product direction to help you picture the idea — not a ready-made product for sale. The actual formula is developed around your brand's positioning and price range.
Centella extract with declared markers
The hero of the product; level chosen by marker content on the COA and by tolerance testing, with the 5% extract tested in humans as a reference.
Panthenol, Glycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate
The hydrating, soothing group alongside centella; no exfoliating acids.
No fragrance, essential oils or colorants
The product color is the natural color of the extract; a short ingredient list.
30 ml dark glass dropper bottle
Protects the extract from light; the label says to use on intact skin and to test on a small area first.
Customization options
What you can specify
The same product type can serve very different customers depending on the brand. Tell us your requirements in the areas below, and our team of pharmacists will develop a matching formula.
Form of centella
Whole extract, standardized extract or purified triterpenes — determines color, odor, consistency and cost.
Active names on the label
Whether to name madecassoside or asiaticoside; if so, HPLC assay on every lot.
Texture
Watery, cooling gel-serum or slightly thickened.
Hydrating and soothing group
Glycerin, Sodium Hyaluronate, Panthenol, Allantoin; a few chosen, not a long list.
Scent and color
Fragrance-free recommended for sensitive skin; the natural color of the raw material.
Ingredient direction
Fragrance-free, alcohol-free, essential-oil-free, vegan — please specify these from the start so suitable raw materials can be selected.
Further reading
Related topics
Centella asiatica in cosmetics
Marker compounds, levels tested in humans and the limits of the evidence (in Vietnamese).
Madecassoside in cosmetics
A purified centella active: mechanisms, human data, formulation notes (in Vietnamese).
Asiaticoside in cosmetics
Poor solubility, the risk of hydrolysis to asiatic acid and how to check it (in Vietnamese).
Sensitive skin
The main customer group for a centella serum (in Vietnamese).
Soothing repair essence manufacturing
A different direction: a barrier-support essence with ceramides and PCA minerals.
Moisturizing gel manufacturing
An oil-free hydrating gel where centella plays a supporting role.
How we work
From idea to finished batch
Eight steps and three milestones signed off by both sides: approved sample, notification number, finished batch. Step-by-step details (in Vietnamese) →
Get started
Tell us about the product you plan to launch
Send us your product direction and expected volume. Our team will get back to you during business hours (Vietnam time, GMT+7).
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