What are extracts in skincare and are extracts made equal

For many k beauty products, we tend to see the term "extract" and "water" used extensively throughout marketing. However, do you truly know what it is? And why are some extracts more expensive than others?

Take one of the most hyped-up ingredients, for example, Artemisia. We see it everywhere. Almost every new k beauty product launch has some sort of Artemisia extract to it. But why are some so much more expensive than others? Especially when two similar products, made touting the same ingredient, can be selling at such different price points?

One reason is due to the purity of the extract. Not all extracts are made equal. Extracts are usually botanical materials soaked in a solvent at a controlled time and temperature. Alcohol is sometimes used as the solvent because it is a much more powerful solvent than water, having the ability to dissolve many organic compounds, thus making the extract higher in concentration than if it's dissolved in water. The active content is then filtered before being diluted with water and some preservatives. The higher the purity (As a consumer, we have no way of knowing the concentration of the "extracts" made available) the higher the concentration of active compounds can be found in the extract

This is just a simplified explanation as to how an extract is made. This however does not mean that all extracts are created in the same way or method. In fact, many companies have their own proprietary way of extracting these botanical compounds - fermentation, temperature, vacuum distillation - just to name a few. It is also because of these technologies that some extracts are more expensive than others. A lot of time and money goes into the R&D of these technologies, with that the ability to extract a higher concentration of actives, that might be impossible if using the mainstream methods.

Not to mention there aren't any international guidelines relating to the purity of an extract (that I know of), and it is not something that needs to be declared on the packaging or ingredients list of a product.

So in essence, not all extracts are made equal. Two products containing the same ingredients could yield very different results, and unfortunately as a consumer, there's no way we can find out besides looking at the physical product itself (extracts usually have a color, so the deeper the color, the possibility of having a higher purity)