Freeze-Dried Purple Sweet Potato Powder
Freeze-dried purple sweet potato powder is peeled root of Ipomoea batatas, steamed through, vacuum freeze-dried and then milled to 80–100 mesh, at ≤5% moisture and water activity ≤0.30. It is 100% purple sweet potato with no maltodextrin or other carrier, and it brings violet colour, a mild nutty taste and body to a recipe in one ingredient. It is not ube or purple yam powder. FruitBuys supplies it from the Mekong Delta and the Central Highlands of Vietnam, milled from freeze-dried pieces at qualified partner facilities.
Whisk 10–15 g into warm milk and a latte turns violet in seconds, with no cooking and no artificial colour on the label. Fold it into bread dough, mochi or ice cream and the purple comes from the root itself, so the ingredient line reads “purple sweet potato powder”. Powder packs 15–20 kg to a carton, so a 20ft container carries 8.25–11 tonnes, the root solids of about 28–44 tonnes of fresh roots, in a standard dry container. The pieces are on freeze-dried purple sweet potato, and the powder sits in our dried fruit powder range.
Product specification
| Parameter | Specification |
|---|---|
| Ingredient | 100% purple-fleshed sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam.); no maltodextrin or other carrier, no sugar, colour, flavour or preservatives |
| Guaranteed specifications | Moisture ≤5.0% and Aw ≤0.30 on every lot COA; no maltodextrin carrier, no added colour, no added sugar |
| Grade | Premium (fine) grade: milled from 100% selected purple flesh, peeled, with no peel, black-spot or white-flesh material above contract limits |
| Fineness | 80–100 mesh standard; 60–120 mesh to your specification |
| Process | Peeled, cut, steamed through, quick-frozen, vacuum freeze-dried, then milled |
| Colour | Bright violet; the shade follows recipe pH (magenta-pink in acid, violet near neutral, blue-grey in alkaline recipes) |
| Anthocyanins | Typically 50–110 mg/100 g (pH-differential, as cyanidin-3-glucoside, dry basis), about 0.5–1.1 mg per gram of powder; per-lot assay on request |
| Taste / odour | Mildly sweet, nutty, sweet-potato flavour; no off-odour |
| Behaviour in use | Disperses in warm water or milk without re-cooking; 1 part powder with 1.5–2 parts hot liquid makes a smooth paste |
| Moisture | ≤5.0% contract limit |
| Water activity | ≤0.30 |
| Total plate count | ≤10⁴ CFU/g |
| Yeasts & moulds / coliforms | ≤10² CFU/g / ≤10² CFU/g |
| E. coli / Salmonella | <10 CFU/g / not detected in 25 g |
| Versions | 100% powder (standard); free-flowing version with an anti-caking agent when you specify it; pre-blend with freeze-dried taro powder to your colour sample |
| Shelf life | 12 months at ≤25 °C, RH ≤60%; 18–24 months in cool storage at ≤18 °C, RH ≤50% |
| HS code | 1106.20 (US HTSUS 1106.20.90; EU CN 1106 20 90) |
Steamed before drying, so it goes straight into the recipe. The root is cooked through before it is frozen and milled. The starch is already gelatinised, which is why the powder disperses in warm milk and thickens a filling without a cooking step and with no raw, floury taste. A café can whisk it into a latte at the counter; a filling line can mix it cold with sugar and fat. One kilogram of powder makes about 2.5–3 kg of smooth paste before sugar or fat.
Colour and flavour from one ingredient. The violet is the root’s own anthocyanin, at about 0.5–1.1 mg per gram. That changes with pH: a yogurt or berry base pulls it toward magenta-pink, milk keeps it violet, and baking soda pushes it toward blue-grey. Use baking powder or yeast in place of soda, or balance soda with a little citric acid, cream of tartar, lemon juice or buttermilk. Add the powder after long heating steps where your process allows, and pack the finished product in opaque material. How it compares with other natural purples and what to write on the label are in purple sweet potato powder as a natural colorant.
What the grade means in your cup. Some mass-market purple powders are hot-air dried, milled with peel and fibre, or bulked with maltodextrin or added colour. Per gram, they give a duller shade and a longer ingredient list. This powder is milled from peeled, selected purple flesh dried under vacuum, so you reach your shade with less powder and keep a one-word ingredient line. The quickest way to compare two samples is the pH test in the verification steps below.
Freeze-dried whole-root powder, hot-air dried powder or “ube flavour” premix
| Freeze-dried powder (this product) | Hot-air dried purple powder | “Ube flavour” premix | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Colour source | The root’s own anthocyanin, kept bright by drying under vacuum | Same root, duller toward brown-grey after hot air | Synthetic dye, a colour blend or a little root powder |
| Ingredient line | Purple sweet potato powder | Purple sweet potato powder, sometimes with carrier | Sugar, creamer, flavour, colour |
| Use | Drinks, bakery, ice cream, fillings, noodles | Bakery and fillings where shade matters less | Drinks only, at a fixed sweetness |
| Sweetness control | Yours: 0 g added sugar | Yours, if no carrier | Set by the premix |
| Clean-label colour claim | Supports “no artificial colors” in the US and a food-ingredient line in the EU | Same, if no added colour | Depends on the dye |
The premix still makes sense for a café that wants one scoop and nothing to tune. Whole-root powder suits a brand or drinks chain that sets its own sweetness and wants “real purple sweet potato” on the menu board. Drinks dosing, dispersion and menu building are in purple sweet potato latte powder, and the difference between purple sweet potato and ube is in purple sweet potato vs ube.
Nutrition (per 100 g)
| Nutrient | Amount | % DV* |
|---|---|---|
| Calories | 345–360 kcal | |
| Total fat | 0.8 g | 1% |
| Saturated fat | 0.2 g | 1% |
| Sodium | 30–90 mg | 1–4% |
| Potassium | 900–1,200 mg | 19–26% |
| Total carbohydrate | 86–89 g | 31–32% |
| Dietary fibre | 7–11 g | 25–39% |
| Total sugars | 8–15 g (0 g added) | |
| Protein | 3.0–5.0 g |
Typical values for 100% freeze-dried purple sweet potato powder; natural variation by origin, season and ripeness applies. Lot nutrition panel available for label artwork.
7–11 g fibre and 900–1,200 mg potassium per 100 g, low in sodium, no added sugar and no oil: a clean-label purple base for drinks, bakery and snacks. On an EU panel (energy 1,400–1,570 kJ / 335–375 kcal; salt 0.08–0.23 g) that reaches the levels for “high fibre”, “high potassium”, “low fat” and “low sodium”, plus “no added sugars”. For formulators, sweet potato starch with this much fibre releases energy more slowly than refined wheat flour or sugar, a fit for clean bakery, breakfast cereal and bars. It is vegan and naturally gluten-free, with none of the top-9 or EU-14 allergens as ingredients; a lot gluten test is available for a gluten-free claim. For your printed label, FruitBuys samples your commercial lot and arranges the panel in FDA or EU format.
Applications and starting doses
| Application | Typical starting dose for trials | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Lattes, milk tea, smoothies, plant milks | 10–15 g per 350–500 ml cup (2–4% w/v) | Violet colour, nutty body, no added sugar from the powder |
| Bread, buns, cakes, mochi, noodles, dumpling dough | 5–10% of flour weight | Violet crumb or dough; use baking powder or yeast, not soda |
| Ice cream, yogurt, pudding, fillings | 4–8% | Colour and body; magenta-pink in acidic bases |
| Taro milk tea colour | 1–5% on the weight of taro powder (1–2% soft pastel lavender, 3–5% deeper lilac) | Colours a real-taro drink without colourant, flavour stays taro |
| Cereal coatings, instant porridge | Set by coating or bowl weight | Purple colour from a food ingredient |
Set your dose on your own recipe. These are starting points, and the final shade depends on your base, pH, fat and heat. Order a 3–5 day sample, make three cups or three test bakes at the low, middle and high dose, and pick the shade under the light your customer sees. For taro drinks, FruitBuys can supply a pre-blend with freeze-dried taro powder made to your approved colour sample, from 500 kg per blend, so your staff scoop one powder instead of two. Format-by-format guidance for bakery, desserts and snacks is in which freeze-dried purple sweet potato format fits your line.
Packaging
| Item | Detail |
|---|---|
| Bulk | 5 kg sealed aluminium-foil PE bags with food-grade silica gel, four to a 20 kg carton (5-ply) as standard, or three to a 15 kg carton where your plant sets a lower manual-handling weight; no nitrogen flush and no iron-based oxygen absorber; a single 20 kg bag on request for plants with large industrial mixers |
| Carton | 58 × 28 × 34 cm, 15–20 kg net; 60 × 39 × 39 cm cartons for palletised loading on request |
| Retail (OEM) | 30 g / 50 g / 100 g / 500 g aluminium-foil zip pouches, or custom sizes; digital print from 3,000–5,000 pouches per SKU (7–10 working days), rotogravure from 500 kg per SKU (15–20 working days) |
| Shelf life | 12 months at ≤25 °C, RH ≤60%; 18–24 months in cool storage at ≤18 °C, RH ≤50%; unopened foil bag with desiccant |
Powder takes up humidity faster than pieces and light fades its violet, which is why it ships in 5 kg bags rather than one 20 kg sack: open one bag per batch and the other three stay sealed, dry and bright until their turn. Reseal a part-used bag at once with the desiccant inside or tip the rest into an airtight, opaque tub, and use it within one to two weeks. Keep opened bags out of humid rooms and fridges, where condensation forms lumps. Storage and bag build for sweet potato products are in how long freeze-dried sweet potato lasts and how to pack it.
Commercial terms and container planning
| Term | Detail |
|---|---|
| Production capacity | 100 MT/year (powder and pieces) |
| 20ft, floor-loaded | About 550 cartons: 8.25–11 t net |
| 40ft HC, floor-loaded | About 1,100 cartons (±20–30): 16.5–22 t net by carton weight, usually planned at about 20–21 t net; the final load is set by the destination’s road weight limits and the shipping line |
| Palletised | On request: 1,200 × 1,000 mm pallets, 30–36 cartons each (about 450–720 kg per pallet by carton weight) |
| Container type | Standard dry container; no reefer |
| Mixed loads | Full container with other FruitBuys products, about 15–20% lower logistics cost per kg than LCL |
| Production lead time | 20–30 days per 20ft after deposit |
| Samples | Prepared in 3–5 working days, then express courier |
| OEM / ODM / private label | MOQ 500 kg per SKU; taro pre-blend from 500 kg per blend |
| Payment | T/T 40% deposit, 60% before shipment or against copy B/L; L/C at sight |
| Incoterms | FOB Cat Lai, CIF, DDP (sea and air) |
| Port of loading | Cat Lai Port or Tan Son Nhat Airport |
Buy powder when you mill anyway. At 20 kg a carton against about 7 kg for whole slices, powder puts about 2.9 times the kilograms in the same container, roughly 65% less sea freight per kg. If your plant would mill, mash or blend the pieces, buying powder saves the milling step and most of the freight.
Supply. The roots come from Binh Tan, Vinh Long Province, Vietnam’s best-known purple sweet potato belt, and from the Central Highlands (Dak Lak, Gia Lai, Lam Dong). The two regions run on different crop calendars, which keeps powder production steady through the year. Dry-season Mekong roots give the deepest violet and can be booked for lines that need the strongest shade. Growing regions and booking are in where Vietnam’s purple sweet potato comes from.
Quality and documents
- Every lot: COA from an independent ISO/IEC 17025 accredited laboratory for moisture, water activity, total plate count, yeasts and moulds, coliforms, E. coli and Salmonella, plus sensory checks (colour, odour, foreign matter).
- Colour control: each lot is matched visually to your approved pre-shipment sample; particle size, L*a*b* colour and total anthocyanins on the COA on request.
- Heavy metals and residues: lead, cadmium, arsenic, mercury and multi-residue pesticides are tested on request or per destination market. FruitBuys arranges independent testing at an accredited laboratory of the buyer’s choice, such as Eurofins or SGS in Vietnam, before the container is sealed.
- On request: Listeria monocytogenes, Bacillus cereus, sulfite and a nutrition panel in FDA or EU format.
- Trial orders: ship with a free release QC log; third-party testing on trial lots is arranged on request, with the lab cost credited in full to the first container order.
- Pre-shipment sample: 100–200 g from the packed lot in two sealed foil pouches with desiccant, one for your trials and one kept sealed for your lab.
- Retained sample: kept from every container lot for its full shelf life, up to 24 months.
- Facility control: one qualified partner facility is locked per contract. Any change needs prior written notice and re-approval of the pre-shipment sample, and you have audit access.
- Facility certifications: HACCP, ISO 22000, US FDA Facility Registration and BRC (qualified processing facility). Halal certification available on request.
- Shipment documents: commercial invoice, packing list, bill of lading, COA, Certificate of Origin Form EUR.1 for the EU and UK or Form CEPA for the UAE, and a phytosanitary certificate with every shipment as part of FruitBuys’ standard export dossier.
Claims on packaging, appearance, caking or water activity are accepted within 14 days of unloading, and lab results within 30 days.
Import and labeling
Purple sweet potato powder is exported under 1106.20, flour, meal and powder of the roots and tubers of heading 07.14. A pre-blend with freeze-dried taro powder stays in the same heading. The invoice, spec and COA describe the goods as “freeze-dried purple sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas) powder, steamed, freeze-dried and milled, no added ingredients”, so your broker files the national line at entry without queries.
In the US Harmonized Tariff Schedule, the powder enters under 1106.20.90 at a free general rate, while dried pieces under 0714.20.20 carry 4.5%, plus any applicable US trade tariffs in force on the entry date, confirmed by your customs broker against the current HTSUS schedule. For a US line that mills or blends the root, powder is the cheaper way in.
For the EU and UK, a Form EUR.1 under the Vietnam trade agreements travels with the shipment and claims preferential treatment; your broker can check the current rate for CN 1106 20 90 on the EU Access2Markets tariff and rules-of-origin tool. For the UAE, a Form CEPA goes with every shipment.
On the label, use the common name “purple sweet potato powder” and the species Ipomoea batatas in your spec, never “ube powder” or “purple yam powder”. In the EU, a whole root dried and milled with nothing selectively extracted is a food ingredient, declared by name, with no E-number. In the US, where the powder brings flavour, fibre and body as well as colour, declare it by its common name; a product coloured with no petroleum-based colours can carry “no artificial colors” under FDA’s February 2026 policy. If you plan a very low dose purely to colour a product that is not a sweet potato product, have your regulatory adviser check the colour additive rules first. Duty by market and what each market checks are in sweet potato HS code and customs.
Verify the sample in five steps
- Run the pH test. Stir a pinch of powder into water in two cups. Add a pinch of baking soda to one: real purple sweet potato turns blue-green. Add a drop of lemon to the other: it turns pink. A synthetic purple blend barely moves.
- Check the colour. Bright, even violet in the pouch and in warm milk at your dose, close to the shade you briefed. A dull or brownish cast points to hot-air drying or old stock.
- Read the water activity within a minute. Fill the meter cup within 60 seconds of opening the pouch; at or below 0.30 the lot was dried and sealed right. Keep the second sealed pouch for your own lab.
- Check flow and fineness. Rub a pinch between your fingers: fine and even, with soft lumps that break at a touch and no hard caking. Pass 100 g through your mesh if you work to a particle spec.
- Taste it in your base. Whisk your dose into warm milk: smooth, mildly sweet and nutty, with no raw-flour or burnt note. Approve the pre-shipment sample in writing; it becomes the colour and quality reference for your container.
FAQ
Is this ube powder?
No. It is purple sweet potato (Ipomoea batatas). Ube is purple yam (Dioscorea alata), a different plant. FruitBuys does not supply ube; this powder gives a violet colour and a mild nutty taste and is labelled as purple sweet potato.
Does it need cooking?
No. The root is steamed through before freeze-drying, so the powder disperses in warm water or milk and goes into fillings and doughs without a separate cooking step.
How much do I use in a latte?
A typical starting point is 10–15 g per 350–500 ml cup. Set the final dose on your own recipe with a sample.
Does it contain maltodextrin or an anti-caking agent?
The standard powder is 100% purple sweet potato with no carrier. A free-flowing version with an anti-caking agent is made only when you specify it.
Why does my bread turn blue-grey?
Baking soda raises the pH and shifts the anthocyanin toward blue-grey. Use baking powder or yeast, or balance the soda with a little acid.
Can you blend it with taro powder?
Yes. FruitBuys supplies a pre-blend with freeze-dried taro powder made to your approved colour sample, from 500 kg per blend. A starting range is 1–5% purple sweet potato powder on the weight of taro powder.
How long does it last?
12 months at ≤25 °C, RH ≤60%, or 18–24 months in cool storage at ≤18 °C, RH ≤50%, in the unopened foil bag with desiccant. Store it dark and use an opened bag within one to two weeks.
What is the minimum order for private label?
500 kg per SKU for OEM, ODM and private-label packing. Samples carry no MOQ.
Request a sample and quote
Send these 12 details and we return a specification, sample and terms in one reply:
- Destination country and port
- Application: drinks, bakery, ice cream or dessert, filling, noodles, cereal, taro drink colour
- Fineness: 80–100 mesh standard, or your mesh
- Version: 100% powder, free-flowing, or pre-blend with taro powder
- Colour target: your reference shade or product, and the pH of your recipe if known
- First-order volume: trial, LCL, 20ft or 40ft HC
- Annual volume and call-off rhythm
- Packaging: bulk bag size or retail pouch size
- Private label: artwork status and labelling market
- Extra tests required by your market or customer
- Preferred Incoterm and payment term
- Target delivery date
