Key takeaways
- An extract ratio compares starting material with finished extract.
- In tinctures, 1:3 means 1g of dried mushroom per 3ml of tincture.
- In powders, 10:1 means 10kg of mushroom made 1kg of extract; the conventions run in opposite directions.
- A ratio says nothing about compound content, starting material quality or effect.
- Compare ratios only between similar products, alongside part used and method.
1:1, 1:3, 10:1, 20:1… Extract ratios appear on many mushroom products, and they are easy to misread. The same format of numbers can mean quite different things depending on the type of product. This article explains how to read them, and what they can and can’t tell you.
Ratios in tinctures
For liquid extracts, ratios follow a long-standing herbal convention. A ratio such as 1:3 means one part of dried starting material to three parts of liquid; for example, 1 gram of dried mushroom for every 3 millilitres of finished tincture.
- 1:1: equal parts; a very concentrated liquid.
- 1:3 or 1:5: common for tinctures.
- 1:10: more dilute.
The smaller the second number, the more starting material per millilitre.
Ratios in extract powders
Powders are usually written the other way round. 10:1 means ten kilograms of mushroom were used to make one kilogram of extract powder. Here, the bigger the first number, the more concentrated the extract.
What a ratio doesn’t tell you
- How much of any compound is present. Two extracts with the same ratio can differ widely depending on the starting material and method.
- Whether the starting material was good. A high ratio of grain-grown mycelium is still largely grain.
- Whether the material was fresh or dry. Fresh mushrooms are mostly water, so ratios based on fresh weight look very different.
- Anything about effect. A more concentrated extract isn’t a promise of a stronger or better result.
Very high powder ratios, such as 20:1 or more, can be achieved by concentrating an extract, but they don’t necessarily mean more of the compounds you might be interested in. See Tincture Strength: What Does ‘Strong’ Actually Mean?
Ratios in dual extracts
Dual extracts are harder to summarise with one number, because two separate extractions are combined. Some producers quote an overall ratio for the finished tincture; others describe each stage. Either is fine, as long as it is explained clearly.
How to use ratios sensibly
- Compare ratios only between products of the same type.
- Read the ratio alongside the part used and the extraction method.
- Treat test results, not ratios, as the way to understand content.
- Be sceptical of ratios used as marketing headlines.
Our ratios
The extract ratio of each Spore & Bloom tincture is shown on its label. Each is a dual extract of UK-grown fruiting bodies, or wild Finnish chaga, made in small batches in Dorset.
