This post series on botanical ingredient adulteration is inspired by the excellent work coming out of the Botanical Adulterants Prevention Program (BAPP) by the American Botanical Council (ABC), continuing today with:
➡️ European Elder (Sambucus nigra) berry and berry extracts are widely used in traditional and contemporary herbal medicine, especially for respiratory and immune-related complaints. The berries are rich in anthocyanins, flavonols, and vitamin C, and both clinical and experimental work suggest potential roles in supporting immune function, and respiratory support. Historically, elderberry preparations have been used for colds, feverish conditions, nasal congestion, and general “winter wellness,” and modern functional-food research continues to explore elderberry’s bioactive properties and its use as a functional ingredient in syrups, beverages, and nutraceuticals.
On the market today, consumers can find Sambucus nigra berry in multiple forms, ranging from traditional food-like preparations to highly processed dietary supplements and cosmetics. Common products include elderberry syrups, gummies, lozenges, capsules or tablets containing dried fruit extract, herbal teas, juices, jams, and wines, as well as standardized extract syrups used in some clinical trials.
For companies, confirming identity is not optional; it’s a legal and ethical duty under cGMPs to verify that each incoming botanical is the right species, the right plant part, and meets agreed quality specs. Brands and manufacturers should be leaning on resources like the BAPP adulteration bulletins and implementing fit-for-purpose analytical methods, rather than relying on nonspecific tests that can miss plant-part adulteration.
Adulteration, in the regulatory sense, means a product is unsafe or of inferior quality because it fails to meet legal standards for purity, strength, or composition (including contamination).
Economic adulteration is emphasized in these posts: intentional substitution, dilution, or undeclared additions that misrepresent a botanical’s true identity or quality compared to what the label and consumer would reasonably expect. Accidental adulteration is also present in some species.
For more detailed information on adulterants in botanicals, see the BAPP publications, which are freely available on their website. See the full downloadable PDF post here on LinkedIn: