RESEARCH ON KOMBUCHA FERMENTATION OF VIETNAM GREEN TEA (CAMELLIA SINENSIS), APPLIED ON FACIAL TONER FORMULATION

Abstract

Kombucha is a fermented sweetened tea that is abundant in organic acids such as acetic acid, lactic acid, gluconic acid, etc., antioxidants such as flavonoids, polyphenol, etc., and vitamins such as B1, B2, B6, B12 and C which are promising to be applied on skin care products. Fermentation of Vietnamese green tea was commonly applied in beverage but their application in skin care cosmetics in Vietnam is surprisingly mediocre. This study was conducted to optimize the Kombucha fermentation of Vietnamese green tea (Camellia sinensis) aimed at applying in facial toner. The result showed that the optimized fermentation condition was green tea 100g, SCOBY 50g, sucrose 100g, pH 4.5 in water 1000mL for 14 days at room temperature. Toner formulation using 15% of the Kombucha fermentation has a pH of 6.0, viscosity of 11.5mm 2 /s and being able to maintain good texture after 28 days in acceleration test at 50°C. The toner was certified for standards such as skin irritation, heavy metal content, and microbial limit by National Institute of Drug Quality Control (NIDQC). A preliminary sensory survey was conducted and gave excellent results, which is promising in further commercial applications.