Spinach Powder

Fresh leaves of Spinacia oleracea are washed, dehydrated in warm air and milled to 80 mesh to give spinach powder. The powder is green with an olive cast and carries the grassy, mildly mineral taste of cooked spinach. Roots, seeds and the plant’s flowering stalks are not used.

This is a whole-leaf powder, and it keeps the fiber, chlorophyll and carotenoids of the leaf. It disperses in water as a coarse green suspension and lends body as well as color, which sets it apart from the fine, fiber-light juice powder of the same vegetable.

SKU: BOT-VPO-0010 Category: Vegetable Powders Tags: Bars & Bakery, Dehydrated Powder, Leaf & Herb, Plant-Based Foods, Seasonings & Flavors, Seasonings & Sauces, Spinach, Vegetable Powders

Dehydrated Spinach Processing

The species is Spinacia oleracea L., spinach, an annual leaf vegetable of the amaranth family (Amaranthaceae). Water spinach, Ipomoea aquatica, and New Zealand spinach, Tetragonia tetragonioides, are unrelated plants with similar names. The part used is the leaf blade with its petiole, harvested while young and tender.

The raw material is fresh spinach leaf. Leaves are washed, trimmed, dried in warm air and ground to a fine powder. Leaves are neither pressed nor extracted, and no carrier is added. Hot-air dehydration gives a darker, more olive green than a freeze-dried form and a flavor closer to cooked spinach than to raw leaf.

Chlorophyll is the pigment that matters. Heat and the slight acidity of leaf tissue convert part of it to pheophytin, so dried spinach leans toward olive. Gentle drying and fast handling after harvest limit that shift. Spinach leaves wilt and bruise within hours of picking, and processors dry them quickly to hold color and keep off-notes down.

Cool-season crops give the best quality. Spring and autumn spinach is mild and tender, while summer-grown plants bolt and develop a bitter, tough leaf. The powder is described by shade and taste, and the cultivar and season are not stated.

Whole-leaf powder keeps the stems and veins of the leaf blade, so it carries more insoluble fiber than the juice form. That fiber is the reason for the coarser dispersion in water and the extra body in doughs and patties, and it is also why the powder hydrates slowly and benefits from a few minutes’ rest in a wet mix.

Spinach Color, Flavor & Composition

Spinach powder is green with an olive tone, and it forms a deep green suspension in water, with fine leaf fragments that stay visible. The taste is grassy and slightly sweet with a mineral, faintly astringent edge that comes from oxalic acid and phenolics. Compared with the juice powder, the whole-leaf form gives more leaf bulk and a more vegetal flavor.

Characteristic constituents are chlorophylls, carotenoids such as lutein, beta-carotene and violaxanthin, nitrate in the leaf, minerals and dietary fiber. No figure is given for any of them. Spinach is a nitrate-bearing leafy vegetable, and the powder keeps the whole leaf matrix.

Form	What It Is	Choose It When
Dehydrated Spinach Powder	Hot-air dried and milled whole leaf	Whole-leaf fiber and a deep olive green are wanted
Spinach Juice Powder	Spray-dried juice on a carrier	A fine, fiber-light, dispersible green is wanted
Freeze-Dried Spinach Powder	Whole leaf dried under vacuum	A fresher green and aroma matter most
Spinach Extract Powder	Ratio extract of the leaf	A concentrated extract is specified

Typical Specifications

Specification Item	Product Information
Latin Name	Spinacia oleracea
Plant Part	Leaf & Herb
Processing	Dehydrated
Common Name	Spinach
Raw Material	Fresh spinach leaf
Ingredient Type	Dehydrated Vegetable Powder
Appearance	Green powder (natural color of the dried material)
Flavor	Grassy, mildly sweet, mineral
Solubility / Dispersibility	Water Dispersible
Quality Parameters
Moisture (LOD)	≤8.0%
Particle Size	80 mesh
Heavy Metals	Lead ≤2 ppm · Arsenic ≤1 ppm · Cadmium ≤1 ppm · Mercury ≤0.1 ppm
Microbiology	TPC ≤10,000 cfu/g · Yeast & Mold ≤1,000 cfu/g · E. coli Negative · Salmonella Negative/25 g
Shelf Life	24 months in unopened original packaging, cool and dry storage

Application Areas

Green Pasta and Noodle Doughs

Noodle and pasta makers add spinach powder to the flour for a green dough with visible leaf flecks. The fiber binds water, so dough hydration is adjusted, and boiling deepens the olive shade, so recipes dose above the final target color.

Savory Bakery and Cracker Mixes

Savory breads, wraps and crackers use spinach powder for color and a vegetable note. The powder mixes evenly into flour, and baking darkens the green further, so the target is judged on the finished baked product and not on the dough.

Soup, Sauce and Dip Premixes

Dry soup, creamed-sauce and dip mixes take spinach powder to give green color and a leaf flavor on rehydration. The fiber thickens the liquid slightly, and a pinch of acid late in preparation should be avoided if the green shade matters.

Plant-Based Fritter and Patty Mixes

Plant-based patties and fritters use spinach powder for color, a leafy flavor and water binding. It pairs with onion, garlic, chickpea and potato, and its fiber helps hold the shape of the cooked patty, so the green color shows evenly through the cut face.

Green Blend Drink Sticks

Dry vegetable blends for drink sticks use spinach powder with fruit powders to mask its grassy edge. It disperses in cold water with stirring, and the whole-leaf fiber settles slowly if the drink is left standing.

Handling Notes

Spinach powder is hygroscopic and takes up moisture from humid air. It clumps first, then darkens at the surface, and a drum left open for a shift can show a stiff crust. Weigh in a dry room and reseal the liner after every draw.

Light, heat and acid attack the green. The pigment fades toward olive and brown over months, faster in warm, bright storage and in acidic dry mixes, so opaque, sealed packaging and a cool store hold the color. Copper and iron also dull the green, so stainless steel tools are the right choice.

The leaf aroma fades and becomes hay-like in aged powder. Dust from this powder stains surfaces green, so dedicated scoops help where pale products share the line. Keep opened bags sealed and use them within a short window.

Leaf powders sometimes carry fine plant fragments that show as dark specks in light-colored products. Where speck-free color matters, screen the powder through a fine sieve before use or choose the juice form.

Packaging & Commercial Supply

Essencefield supports product evaluation, formulation trials, commercial orders, and ongoing ingredient supply. Packaging, storage, and shipping arrangements are determined by product characteristics, order quantity, stability requirements, and destination-market needs.

Supply Item	General Information
Sample	Available upon request for formulation, testing, and supplier evaluation
Order Quantities	100 g · 1 kg · 5 kg · 25 kg · 100 kg · 500 kg · Bulk
Sample Lead Time	Typically 5–7 days after sample confirmation
Production Lead Time	Typically 15–30 days after order and specification confirmation
Packaging	Suitable protective inner packaging with bags, cartons, drums, or other appropriate outer packaging
Storage	Store in tightly sealed, suitable protective packaging in a cool, dry environment. Protect from moisture, heat, and direct sunlight. Specific storage conditions follow the approved product specification.
Documentation	COA · Product Specification · TDS · SDS · Applicable declarations (as applicable)

Final order quantities, lead times, packaging, documentation, and shipping arrangements are confirmed according to the selected product and commercial requirements.