How It's Made
Key facts
- Name on labels (INCI)
- Glycerin
- Also called
- Glycerol, Glycerine, Propane-1,2,3-triol
- CAS number
- 56-81-5 source
- E number
- E422
- Grade to ask for
- USP / BP / EP, ≥ 99.5%
- Supplied as
- Drums (250 kg), IBCs
A clear, sweet, syrupy liquid (glycerol), mostly a by-product of soap and biodiesel making from palm and other vegetable oils.
What it does
- Humectant
- Its three hydroxyl groups make it strongly water-attracting, so it holds moisture in skin, hair and foods. In creams it is typically used at a few percent.
- Solvent and carrier
- Dissolves many active ingredients and flavours, which is why it is used in syrups, elixirs and herbal extracts.
- Sweetener and texturiser
- About 60% as sweet as sugar, it adds sweetness and body to low-fat foods and keeps baked goods and confectionery soft.
- Chemical feedstock
- A raw material for polyols, emulsifiers such as mono- and diglycerides, and other chemicals.
Products on How It's Made that use glycerin
| Product | Its role there |
|---|---|
| Face cream | Humectant. A humectant that attracts water and holds it in the outer layer of the skin. |
| Vitamin C serum | Humectant. |
| Sunscreen SPF 50 | Humectant. |
| Body lotion | Humectant. A humectant that draws and holds water in the outer layer of the skin. |
| Foaming cleanser | Humectant. A humectant that offsets the drying effect of cleansing. |
| Shampoo | Moisture. A humectant that holds a little water on hair and scalp, so the shampoo feels less stripping. |
| Hair conditioner | Moisture. A humectant that helps hold moisture in the hair. |
| Body wash | Moisture. A humectant that leaves a little moisture on the skin so it feels less dry after rinsing. |
| Styling gel | Flexibility. |
| Sugar body scrub | Moisture. |
| Hand cream | Moisture. |
| Cough syrup | Soothing, body. |
Across the products on How It's Made, glycerin turns up in shampoo, body wash, face cream, body lotion, conditioner, cleanser, serum, sunscreen, styling gel and cough syrup: wherever a formulator wants to stop a product drying the skin or to keep a liquid smooth.
Grades and specifications
- USP / BP / EP (99.5% and above)
- Pharmacopoeia grades for cosmetics, food and medicines, with limits on impurities. Buyers often ask for a certificate confirming the absence of diethylene glycol.
- Refined vegetable glycerin
- Refined from palm, coconut or other vegetable oils; often requested for natural-positioned products.
- Crude and technical glycerin
- Lower-purity grades from biodiesel plants, used as industrial feedstock rather than in consumer products.
Handling, safety and regulation
Glycerin has low toxicity and is easy to handle. It is hygroscopic, so drums should be kept closed to stop it absorbing moisture. A key quality risk is contamination with diethylene glycol, which looks and tastes similar and has caused fatal poisonings in medicines; regulators such as the US FDA have advised testing glycerin batches for it.
As a food additive it is E422 and listed in the Codex General Standard for Food Additives. Products containing it are regulated as foods, cosmetics or medicines depending on their use, which in Nigeria means NAFDAC registration.
Where glycerin comes from
Glycerol forms the backbone of every fat and oil molecule. When oils are made into soap or biodiesel, glycerol is released; biodiesel alone produces glycerol at about 10% of its output, which created a large global supply. The crude glycerin is then refined to pharmaceutical purity. Large volumes come from palm-oil processing in South-East Asia, and drums and IBCs are imported into West Africa through chemical distributors.
Sourcing glycerin through Matta
Send Matta a request with the grade, quantity and delivery location you need. For the wider category, see Matta's ingredients page.
Listings found on matta.trade, read 15 Oct 2026. Prices are a snapshot, not live; the listing is always the final word. Different suppliers and grades: compare prices only where the unit matches.
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