More About Aloe

General

Aloe Vera gel, or juice is the term given to the mucilaginous material found inside the leaves of the Aloe Vera plant (Aloe Vera Barbadensis). This is a totally different substance than what is known as Aloe USP in the pharmaceutical world. Aloe USP is comprised mainly of Aloin, which is a natural cathartic. The Aloe USP is obtained from the latex of the leaf. This latex is found just under the rind of the leaf,and does not come into contact with the inner gel of the plant. It is a sticky, extremely bitter ingredient. The Aloe gel that we use for skin care and as a drink utilizes the
inner fillet of the leaf only. This inner material has its own special characteristics and uses. We will go more into detail about the chemistry of the gel later.

Processing

The way the inner gel is extracted from the leaf is very important.
As mentioned above, the latex portion of the leaf is located between the rind and the inner gel. The gel should be removed from the leaf without disrupting this area so that little or no latex (aloin), gets into the gel. If latex does get into the gel, it makes the gel very bitter. This bitter taste can be distinguished from the vegetable taste of the inner gel with little experience. Just because Aloe juice is bitter, it does not mean that it contains 100% pure Aloe juice from the inner fillet.

CAC Aloe Vera Concentrates are made from only hand filleted Aloe Gel. If the gel is extracted by mechanical methods, the latex can mix with the inner gel resulting in a loss in purity. Only by hand filleting the leaf are you able to cleanly separate the gel from the rind. The gel is then ground to a liquid and the pulp is removed. All this is performed at the farm, so only fresh leaves are processed.

Specifications and Chemistry

The Aloe juice is processed and bottled under very tight control to insure the highest quality possible, both in activity and freshness. Aloe Vera juice has two primary physical characteristics, taste and color. As we stated before, pure aloe gel has a unique vegetable taste and the bitterness that comes from excess latex, or aloin should be minimal. A very basic rule is:
"If it taste like water... it probably is".
So be careful when selecting an Aloe Juice, many are heavily diluted for taste or cost considerations, or spiked with Aloin or other materials to add a bitter taste. Once you become familiar with the taste of pure Aloe Juice you will be able to recognize less pure products. Although Aloe Juice is less than 0.5% solids, it contains over 40 different components. They include enzymes, muccopolysaccharides, low molecular weight sugars, various glycosides, and minerals. Some of these respond to air and light by turning dark in color. This does not indicate any loss of activity, it is just a natural reaction of the juice to the air and light. Although there are many theories on why aloe does what it does, there is still no clear explanation on how it helps the body or which of the many components that make up aloe is responsible. That is why we process and bottle only the pure unadulterated aloe gel, with all of its natural properties. Only sodium benzoate is added to the product to protect its freshness and citric acid to stabilize the pH for maximum freshness. Once opened, a partial drum should be kept refrigerated. A sealed drum will maintain its freshness for up to 1 full year.