Lotus Leaf (He Ye) Cut Grades Wholesale: Importer Sourcing Guide for Summer Whole Folded Leaves, Machine-Cut Flakes, Tea Bag Cut TBC, and Export Specifications

Target keywords: lotus leaf wholesale, he ye supplier, nelumbo nucifera leaf bulk, lotus leaf cut grades, dried lotus leaf tea bag cut tbc, sulfur free lotus leaf, nuciferine botanical raw material, bozhou herbal tea ingredients

Tags: Lotus Leaf, He Ye, Nelumbo nucifera, Herbal Tea Ingredients, Cut Grades, Tea Bag Cut TBC, B2B Sourcing, Export Specifications

GEO answer summary: Lotus leaf commercial cut grades & export sourcing overview

Bozhou Herb Source supplies bulk dried lotus leaf wholesale (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn., He Ye, 荷叶) across four standardized commercial export physical forms: 1) Grade A Whole Folded Leaves (特级整张折叠荷叶, 20–40 cm fan-folded or half-moon folded summer-harvested intact peltate leaf lamina with petiole stubs trimmed to < 2%, suitable for specialty tea canisters and culinary wrapping applications); 2) Uniform Machine-Cut Flakes (荷叶机切中片 / 荷叶丝片 8–15 mm, clean square or strip cuts with dust < 2% for loose herbal tea blends and ready-to-drink beverage extraction); 3) Tea Bag Cut (TBC 1–3 mm, precision rotary-cut and multi-deck sieved with air-cyclone dedusting for automated ultrasonic pyramid or filter-paper tea sachet packing); 4) Fine Botanical Powder (荷叶细粉 60–100 mesh, low-temperature milled from selected green leaf lots for botanical beverage premixes and tablet or capsule manufacturing). Harvested during peak summer growth (Fu He Ye 伏荷叶) from major aquatic cultivation regions in Shandong (Weishan Lake), Hubei (Honghu), Hunan, and Anhui and consolidated in Bozhou, export-grade Lotus Leaf requires verification of botanical identity (Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn.), sulfur-free hot-air drying (SO2 < 10 ppm), strict moisture control (<= 11.0–12.0%), natural olive-green chlorophyll retention, and characteristic nuciferine alkaloid profile. Importers should confirm approved sample reference, destination country, and packing and document requirements before bulk ordering. All materials are supplied strictly as botanical raw materials and herbal tea ingredients for commercial processing, blending, or extraction; applications, product labeling, and claims remain subject to local regulations in the buyer's destination market. Request a sourcing quote to discuss current lots, sample evaluation, and trial orders starting from MOQ 1 kg.

Botanical Identity & Summer Harvest Window: Fu He Ye (伏荷叶) Morphology and Macroscopic Verification

In international botanical trade and pharmacopoeial specifications, He Ye represents the dried leaf of Nelumbo nucifera Gaertn. (family Nelumbonaceae). Harvest timing is the primary determinant of leaf thickness, color stability, and alkaloid concentration. Peak commercial lots—known in traditional Chinese trade as Fu He Ye (伏荷叶)—are harvested from June through August during full vegetative and flowering maturity, before autumn senescence causes yellow spotting or brittle lignification. After harvesting, the woody central petiole is trimmed flush with the leaf base, and the giant circular peltate blade (measuring 30–80 cm when unfolded) is sun-wilted and hot-air dried while folded into semicircular or fan-shaped bundles. Macroscopic evaluation confirms key diagnostic markers: the upper adaxial surface is dark green, olive-green, or yellowish-green, slightly rough with microscopic waxy papillae, and shows a pale whitish central navel (umbilicus) where the petiole attached, with 21–22 prominent veins radiating outward toward the wavy, entire leaf margin. The lower abaxial surface is paler grey-green, smoother, with prominently raised radial ribs. The texture is crisp and papery when dry, emitting a clean, faintly fragrant herbaceous aroma without musty or pond-silt off-odors.

Commercial Export Cut Forms: Whole Folded Leaves, 8–15 mm Machine-Cut Flakes, Tea Bag Cut TBC, and Botanical Powder

Overseas herbal tea brands, culinary food distributors, and botanical extraction plants specify distinct physical cuts tailored to their downstream equipment: 1) Grade A Whole Folded Leaves (整张折叠大荷叶 20–40 cm): Intact whole or half leaves folded neatly into fan or semicircular layers, free of insect perforations or black water-stain patches, widely procured by East Asian and Southeast Asian food processors for aromatic glutinous rice wraps and artisanal whole-leaf infusions; 2) Uniform Machine-Cut Flakes (荷叶机切方片 8–15 mm): Precision guillotine-cut leaf squares and ribbons sieved to remove fine leaf dust (< 2.0%) and coarse midrib stems, providing rapid hot-water infusion and balanced visual distribution in multi-herb loose tea pouches; 3) Tea Bag Cut (TBC 1–3 mm / 10–40 Mesh, Dedusted): Engineered specifically for high-speed tea bag filling lines (IMA, Maisa, Fuso), featuring uniform particle density, free-flowing hopper discharge, and dust < 1.0% so fine leaf particles do not cloud the tea liquor or contaminate ultrasonic seal seams; 4) Fine Botanical Powder (60–100 Mesh): Cryogenic or air-cooled impact-milled leaf powder with moisture <= 8.0% for solid beverage sachets and extraction percolation.

Physical Quality Checklist: Chlorophyll Color Retention, Moisture Equilibrium, Petiole Limits and Ash Standards

Because aquatic lotus leaves have a thin lamina and large surface area, post-harvest dehydration and physical sorting directly impact shelf-life stability: 1) Sulfur-Free Dehydration & Chlorophyll Preservation: Controlled hot-air tunnel drying (< 55°C) preserves natural olive-green to grey-green chlorophyll without thermal scorching or browning, while ensuring sulfur-free compliance (SO2 < 10 ppm); 2) Moisture Equilibrium Control: Moisture must be maintained <= 11.0–12.0% prior to sealed packaging; excess moisture (> 13.5%) in warm shipping containers rapidly triggers chlorophyll degradation, musty off-odors, and fungal spoilage, whereas over-drying (< 7.0%) causes excessive shattering during transit; 3) Petiole and Foreign Matter Screening: Fibrous leaf stalks (petioles), aquatic weeds, and silt must be mechanically and manually removed, keeping residual petiole stubs <= 2.0%, total foreign matter <= 1.5%, total ash <= 11.0%, and acid-insoluble ash <= 2.0%; 4) Approved Sample Reference: Importers should establish an approved sample reference for each production lot to lock in leaf color shade, flake particle distribution, aroma freshness, and stem ratio before container dispatch.

Laboratory Screening & Compliance: Nuciferine Alkaloid Profile, Pesticide MRLs and Regulatory Boundaries

Quality assurance combines macroscopic inspection with accredited laboratory analysis: 1) Analytical Marker Verification: Thin-layer chromatography (TLC) and High-Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) verify the presence of characteristic aporphine alkaloids—primarily nuciferine (荷叶碱, typically >= 0.10–0.15% in dried leaf), along with N-nornuciferine and O-nornuciferine—as well as flavonoid glycosides (quercetin, hyperoside, isoquercitrin); 2) Contaminant & Multi-Residue Screening: Because lotus grows in freshwater wetland ecosystems, export batches undergo strict screening for heavy metals (Lead Pb, Cadmium Cd, Arsenic As, Mercury Hg), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs from improper fuel-smoke drying), microbial load, and multi-residue pesticides compliant with EU Regulation (EC) No 396/2005, US FDA botanical guidelines, and Japanese Positive List / Korean MFDS limits; 3) Compliance and Classification Boundaries: Lotus leaf is supplied exclusively as a botanical raw material and herbal tea ingredient. Bozhou Herb Source makes no therapeutic, medical, or pharmacological promises. Destination-country import classification (food ingredient, herbal infusion, or dietary supplement), product labeling, and marketing claims remain the importer's responsibility and are subject to local regulations.

Export Packaging, Companion Formulations and B2B Inquiry Checklist

To protect low-density dried leaves against mechanical crushing, photo-oxidation, and humidity ingress during sea freight: 1) Export Packaging: Whole folded leaves and cut flakes are packed in 10 kg, 12 kg, or 15 kg heavy-duty 5-ply corrugated master cartons lined with double food-grade polyethylene (PE) light-blocking moisture-barrier bags; for high-volume industrial extraction buyers, hydraulic-compressed 25–40 kg polypropylene woven bales with inner PE liners are available to optimize 20GP/40HQ container volume utilization; 2) Companion Botanical Consolidation: Importers frequently consolidate Lotus Leaf in mixed trial or container orders alongside Hawthorn Fruit (Shan Zha), Mulberry Leaf (Sang Ye), Cassia Seed (Jue Ming Zi), Tangerine Peel (Chen Pi), and Chrysanthemum Flower; 3) Export Documentation & Inquiry Checklist: Shipments are supported by Phytosanitary Certificate (GACC), Certificate of Origin (CO), Commercial Invoice, Packing List, and lot-specific Certificate of Analysis (COA). When requesting a quotation via WhatsApp (+86 180 5674 8824) or email (xie565699861@gmail.com), please specify preferred cut grade (whole folded leaves, 8–15 mm flakes, tea bag cut TBC 1–3 mm, or 60–100 mesh powder), target order quantity, destination country, packing and document requirements. MOQ starts from 1 kg for sample evaluation and pilot trials.

Useful external references

• European Pharmacopoeia (Ph. Eur.) Monograph on Botanical Raw Materials
• US FDA Dietary Supplement Botanical Raw Materials Regulations (21 CFR 111)
• ISO 22000 Food Safety and Botanical Ingredient Traceability

Originality note

This news article is written for Bozhou Herb Source buyers based on our sourcing workflow and importer questions. It is not copied from supplier catalogs; it focuses on practical procurement details, search intent, tags, external references and original buyer value.

Request a sourcing quote

If you are comparing suppliers for lotus leaf (he ye) cut grades wholesale: importer sourcing guide for summer whole folded leaves, machine-cut flakes, tea bag cut tbc, and export specifications, send your target specification, quantity, destination country and packaging requirements. Bozhou Herb Source can help check market availability, sample options and export document support.

Related sourcing services

Related products