Saw Palmetto (Serenoa Repens)
Saw Palmetto (Serenoa Repens)
Purity Levels
Total Fatty Acids 85% to 95%
Mechotech designs and manufactures turnkey extraction plants for Saw Palmetto (Serenoa repens) berries, producing a liposterolic extract standardised to 85% to 95% total fatty acids. We supply the complete machinery — berry drying and milling, lipophilic solvent or supercritical CO2 extraction, filtration, concentration, solvent recovery and encapsulation-ready finishing — to convert dried Saw Palmetto fruit into a consistent, fatty-acid- and phytosterol-standardised extract for the men's health nutraceutical and pharmaceutical industries.
Mechotech's Saw Palmetto plant is engineered around the specific chemistry of the berry's liposterolic complex — free fatty acids, phytosterols (including beta-sitosterol), and fatty-acid esters — which, unlike polar-solvent HPLC-standardised alkaloid or polyphenol extracts, is recovered using a non-polar lipophilic extraction approach (hexane, ethanol/lipophilic solvent systems, or supercritical CO2). The extraction line is built around closed, jacketed SS 316L vessels sized for oil-bearing feedstock, with concentration and solvent-recovery stages configured for a lipid-rich matrix rather than an aqueous or hydro-alcoholic one. Delivered with PLC-SCADA automation and full batch documentation, each plant is engineered to the declared Total Fatty Acids specification.
Technical Specifications
| Product | Saw Palmetto (Serenoa Repens) Extraction Plant |
|---|---|
| Botanical Name | Serenoa repens |
| Raw Material | Dried Saw Palmetto berries (fruit) |
| Plant Part | Fruit (berry) |
| Extract Type | Liposterolic extract (oil / soft extract, or standardised powder on carrier) |
| Standardisation | Total Fatty Acids 85% to 95% |
| Extraction Method | Lipophilic solvent extraction (hexane / ethanol) or supercritical CO2 extraction (closed, jacketed SS 316L extractors) |
| Product-contact Material | SS 316L, electropolished, CIP-cleanable |
| Filtration System | Plate-and-frame filter press with cartridge polish filtration and centrifugal clarification |
| Concentration System | Falling-film / wiped-film vacuum evaporator with closed-loop solvent recovery |
| Drying System | Not applicable for oil/soft-extract form; vacuum tray dryer available for powder-on-carrier presentation |
| Automation | PLC-SCADA with recipe management, batch traceability and production reporting |
| Plant Capacity | Configured to requirement |
| Utility Requirements | Steam, chilled/cooling water, compressed air, nitrogen (inert blanketing), power (project-specific) |
| Compliance | GMP, HACCP hygienic design; full documentation for qualification |
| Final Product Form | Liposterolic soft extract / oil (softgel-ready), or standardised powder on carrier |
Plant Capacities
| Plant Scale | Berry Throughput | Typical Use |
|---|---|---|
| Pilot | Configured to your feedstock and trial plan | Product development, parameter validation |
| Semi-Commercial | Configured between pilot and commercial scale | Contract manufacturing, scale-up trials |
| Commercial | Configured to raw-material supply and confirmed buyer volume | Export-grade continuous production |
Capacity is configured to raw-material supply and confirmed buyer volume; we recommend a pilot plant to validate parameters before scaling.
Manufacturing Process
Berry Cleaning & Size Reduction
Dried Saw Palmetto berries are cleaned of stems and foreign matter, then crushed/milled to a uniform particle size to expose the oil-bearing pericarp and seed tissue to solvent.
Lipophilic Extraction
Milled berry is charged into closed, jacketed SS 316L extractors and extracted with a non-polar lipophilic solvent system (or processed via supercritical CO2 extraction) under controlled temperature and multiple cycles to recover the free fatty acid and phytosterol complex.
Solid-Liquid Separation & Filtration
The extract is separated from spent marc through a plate-and-frame filter press or centrifugal clarification, followed by cartridge polish filtration to remove residual fines.
Vacuum Concentration
The filtered miscella is concentrated in a falling-film or wiped-film vacuum evaporator suited to a lipid-rich matrix, gently removing solvent while preserving the heat-sensitive fatty-acid and sterol profile.
Solvent Recovery
A closed-loop recovery system condenses and recycles the lipophilic solvent back into production.
Standardisation
The concentrated liposterolic extract is assayed and adjusted to the declared specification — Total Fatty Acids 85% to 95% — before final packing.
Finishing & Quality Control
The standardised extract is filled as a liposterolic oil/soft extract for softgel encapsulation, or adsorbed onto a carrier and dried to a powder form, then released after fatty-acid profile assay, residual-solvent, heavy-metal, microbial, and moisture testing with full certificate-of-analysis documentation.
Major Plant Equipment
- Raw material cleaning system
- Berry crusher / hammer mill (size reduction)
- Stainless-steel lipophilic extraction vessels (jacketed, SS 316L)
- Supercritical CO2 extraction unit (optional)
- Solvent storage tanks (nitrogen-blanketed)
- Solvent transfer pumps
- Plate heat exchangers
- Plate-and-frame filter press / centrifugal clarifier
- Cartridge polish filters
- Falling-film / wiped-film vacuum evaporator
- Closed-loop solvent recovery system
- Condensers & vacuum pumps
- Softgel-fill holding tanks / carrier-adsorption and drying unit
- CIP (clean-in-place) system
- PLC-SCADA control panel, electrical MCC & instrumentation
Plant Output
Applications
- Men's prostate health / BPH-support supplement formulations
- Softgel and liquid-filled capsule manufacturing
- Pharmaceutical standardised liposterolic ingredient supply
- Hair and scalp health formulations (DHT-related applications)
- Nutraceutical tablet and powder-blend manufacturing
- Veterinary supplement applications
- Export to regulated-market ingredient buyers
Key Features
GMP Hygienic SS 316L Construction
Electropolished SS 316L product-contact surfaces use GMP hygienic design, with CIP operation between batches.
Lipophilic Extraction Line
Extraction, filtration, and concentration stages are sized and configured for a lipid-rich liposterolic matrix rather than an aqueous or hydro-alcoholic one, matching Saw Palmetto's actual chemistry.
Supercritical CO2 Extraction Option
Plants can be configured with supercritical CO2 extraction as a solvent-residue-free alternative to hexane/ethanol-based lipophilic extraction.
Closed-Loop Solvent Recovery
Integrated recovery returns extraction solvent for reuse.
Standardised to Specification
In-process and batch-release fatty-acid assay are used to check the finished extract against its declared specification (Total Fatty Acids 85% to 95%).
Scalable Batch Capacity
Plants are configured to requirement from pilot scale upward, with modular expansion.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does Mechotech supply the complete machinery for Saw Palmetto extraction?
What specification can the Saw Palmetto plant achieve?
Why is Saw Palmetto extracted differently from a typical HPLC-standardised herbal extract?
Can the plant use supercritical CO2 extraction instead of solvent extraction?
What production capacities are available for the Saw Palmetto plant?
What is the typical cost and delivery timeline for a Saw Palmetto extraction plant?
Which industries use Saw Palmetto extract, and does the plant support GMP qualification?
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