What Is Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract? Red Clover on the Label

Turn a serum or a sheet mask over and, somewhere down the ingredient list, you may find Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract. It reads like a chemical, which is exactly the wrong impression. It is the standardised international name for an extract of red clover flowers, written in Latin because the naming system requires it — nothing more exotic than that. This article covers what the name encodes, what the European Commission’s ingredient database actually records about it, what the plant material contains, why formulators are interested, and — the part most articles on this subject skip — what the evidence does and does not currently support.

The short answer

Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract is the INCI name for a botanical extract obtained from the flowers of red clover, Trifolium pratense. It is listed in CosIng, the European Commission’s cosmetic ingredient database, under reference number 59842, where its registered functions are astringent and fragrance.¹ The plant material is rich in a family of compounds called isoflavones, and the extract appears in skincare, masks and serums.

What an INCI name is, and why the label is in Latin

The ingredient list on a cosmetic package is written according to INCI — the International Nomenclature of Cosmetic Ingredients. It is a shared naming standard: the same ingredient is written the same way in Türkiye, in Germany and in Japan, which is what makes an ingredient list readable across borders rather than a matter of local marketing.

For botanical ingredients, an INCI name is usually built from three parts: the Latin species name + the part of the plant used + how it was prepared.

• Trifolium pratense — the scientific name of red clover
• Flower — the plant part
• Extract — the preparation

So “Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract” means, in plain language, red clover flower extract. Once you can read the pattern, most botanical entries on a label stop being mysterious.

The official record

The European Commission catalogues cosmetic ingredients in a database called CosIng. Each entry records the ingredient’s identity, its chemical registry numbers and the functions declared for it.

One distinction is worth getting right, because it is abused constantly in ingredient marketing: CosIng is an inventory, not an approval list. The Commission says so on its own pages — the database is not legally binding, and an ingredient appearing in it does not mean that ingredient has been approved for use in cosmetic products.⁴ In the European Union, the regulatory status of a cosmetic ingredient is set by Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and its annexes, not by a database entry.

What can be said, precisely: red clover derivatives do not appear in the annexes of that Regulation — the lists of prohibited substances, restricted substances, and permitted colourants, preservatives and UV filters. No restriction is attached to them there.

Red clover’s other INCI names

You may well see a different name on a label. Separate records exist for different plant parts and different preparations, and their registered functions are not identical. Every entry in the table below was checked against the live CosIng record on 18 August 2026.^{1, 2, 3}

The point to take from the table: the leaf extract and the flower extract are not registered for the same functions. The leaf extract is listed as antioxidant and skin conditioning; the flower extract as astringent and fragrance. Which of the two is on the label is therefore worth a second look, and worth not conflating.

One more caution. Trifolium repens — white clover — is a different species with its own separate CosIng entries. It is not the same plant, and the two should not be read interchangeably.

What is actually in it

Red clover is one of the richest members of the legume family in isoflavones, and that is the reason it gets attention at all.

Isoflavones

Four dominate:

• Formononetin
• Biochanin A
• Daidzein
• Genistein

Formononetin and biochanin A are the methylated derivatives of daidzein and genistein respectively, and they are the forms that predominate in the living plant. That is precisely what separates red clover from soy, where daidzein and genistein are the dominant pair — a difference we go into in more depth in red clover versus soy isoflavones.

In the plant these compounds are mostly not free. They circulate bound to sugar as glycosides: the glycoside of formononetin is called ononin, that of biochanin A sissotrin. If you want the chemistry in full, our companion article on red clover isoflavones takes it apart properly.

Measured concentrations in plant material at the flowering stage:⁵

The rest of the profile

• Clovamide — a phenolic compound concentrated in the leaves. In plants grown in Italy, leaf content was measured at 15.6 mg/g dry weight.⁸
• Flavonols — quercetin derivatives
• Coumestans — coumestrol, medicagol
• Pterocarpans — maackiain and trifolirhizin, which play a part in the plant’s own defence against fungi
• Saponins and coumarins

Why it is used in cosmetics

Isoflavones are classified as phytoestrogens, and the reason is structural. The shape of an isoflavone molecule resembles that of 17β-estradiol, the principal human estrogen, closely enough that isoflavones can bind to estrogen receptors.¹⁰

That changes in estrogen levels have effects on skin is well established in the dermatological literature, which is why plant phytoestrogens are a group of ingredients cosmetic formulators keep returning to.

Across the CosIng records, the declared functions of red clover derivatives include antioxidant, skin conditioning, emollient, astringent and hair conditioning. Those are declared ingredient functions in an inventory — a description of the role an ingredient is used for, not a finding about what any finished product does.

Typical applications: serums, moisturisers, masks, products aimed at mature skin, and hair care.

Evidence status: the honest picture

There is a great deal of overstatement about this plant online. Here is the position as it actually stands.

What is known:

• Red clover’s isoflavone content is well characterised and measurable.
• Isoflavones have been shown to bind estrogen receptors.
• Cosmetic ingredient functions are registered for red clover derivatives in the EU database.

What is not yet known:

• There is no published systematic review or meta-analysis specific to red clover’s effects on skin. The human data in this area is limited to a small number of small studies relying on subjective assessment.
• A significant share of the “proven for skin” claims circulating online actually rest on studies conducted with soy isoflavones. Soy and red clover have different isoflavone profiles, and findings from one cannot simply be transferred to the other.

We go through what the skin studies do and do not show in detail in what the research on red clover and skin actually shows.

Why write it this way? Because describing an ingredient accurately is worth more than making it sound bigger than it is. Red clover is interesting and well characterised. It does not need the exaggeration.

Working with it in a formulation

Red clover extracts are generally supplied as aqueous or hydroalcoholic extracts, or as powdered extracts standardised on total isoflavone content.

Why standardisation matters. The isoflavone content of commercial red clover products varies substantially.⁹ In practice that means two extracts carrying the same INCI name can be materially different in composition. When a label states not just the INCI name but the standardisation ratio, you are looking at a more transparent product. Ours is set out on our red clover ingredient page.

Preparation method changes the composition. Aqueous preparations — infusions and decoctions — are richer in glycosides such as ononin and sissotrin than 45% ethanolic tinctures are.⁷

What else moves the number. Plant part (leaves and flowers are richer than roots and stems), harvest timing, cultivar, and drying method.⁶

Safety

Red clover extracts are in common cosmetic use, and no restriction is recorded against them in CosIng.

Oral use — food supplements — is a separate question, and it comes with cautions that deserve to be stated plainly:^{11, 12}

• It is reported as possibly unsafe during pregnancy and breastfeeding.
• Because red clover contains coumarin derivatives, caution is advised for anyone taking anticoagulant medication.
• Anyone with a history of estrogen-sensitive cancer should speak to a doctor.

The distinction between the two routes is the single most misread thing about this plant; we set it out in full in topical versus oral red clover. For the cautions themselves, see red clover side effects and who should avoid it. And for the wider picture of what this plant is and what the research covers, start with our main guide, Red Clover Benefits for Skin, Hair and Health.

Frequently asked questions

Is Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract a natural ingredient?

Yes. It is a botanical extract obtained from the flowers of the red clover plant, Trifolium pratense. The CosIng definition describes it as an extract of the flowers of red clover, Fabaceae.

Is this ingredient approved in the EU?

It is registered in the European Commission’s CosIng cosmetic ingredient database, and it does not appear in the restriction annexes of the Cosmetics Regulation. That distinction matters: CosIng is an inventory, not an approval list, and the Commission states that the database is not legally binding. Regulatory status in the EU is determined by Regulation (EC) No 1223/2009 and its annexes.

What is the difference between Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract and Leaf Extract?

One is made from the flowers, the other from the leaves, and their registered CosIng functions differ. The flower extract (59842) is listed as astringent and fragrance; the leaf extract (59840) as antioxidant and skin conditioning.

Is the phytoestrogen content a risk?

No restriction is recorded in CosIng for cosmetic use. If you have a hormone-sensitive condition, it is sensible to speak with your doctor before using any product. Note too that the systemic safety discussion around phytoestrogens comes almost entirely from research on oral supplements, which is a different route and a different dose from a cosmetic applied to the skin.

Which products contain it?

Serums, moisturisers, masks, products formulated for mature skin, and hair care products.

This article is for general information and education only. It is not medical advice, and Minerva108 cosmetic products are not intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. If you are pregnant or breastfeeding, taking any medication, or managing a health condition, please consult a qualified healthcare professional before using red clover in supplement form.

References

1. European Commission. CosIng — Cosmetic Ingredient Database, entry for Trifolium Pratense Flower Extract (ref. no. 59842). Accessed 18 August 2026. ec.europa.eu
2. European Commission. CosIng — Cosmetic Ingredient Database, entry for Trifolium Pratense Leaf Extract (ref. no. 59840). Accessed 18 August 2026. ec.europa.eu
3. European Commission. CosIng — Cosmetic Ingredient Database, entries for Trifolium Pratense Extract (83468), Trifolium Pratense Flower (84269), Trifolium Pratense Seed Extract (84081), Trifolium Pratense Symbiosome Extract (59841), Trifolium Pratense Flower/Leaf/Stem Juice (84270) and Trifolium Pratense Flower/Leaf/Stem Water (91397). Accessed 18 August 2026. ec.europa.eu
4. European Commission. Cosmetic ingredient database — terms of use and legal status notice. ec.europa.eu
5. Lemežienė N, Padarauskas A, Butkutė B, Cesevičienė J, Taujenis L, Norkevičienė E. The concentration of isoflavones in red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) at flowering stage. Zemdirbyste-Agriculture 2015;102(4):443–448. doi:10.13080/z-a.2015.102.057
6. Booth NL, Overk CR, Yao P, et al. The chemical and biologic profile of a red clover (Trifolium pratense L.) phase II clinical extract. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2006;12(2):133–139. doi:10.1089/acm.2006.12.133
7. Malca-Garcia GR, Zagal D, Graham J, et al. Dynamics of the isoflavone metabolome of traditional preparations of Trifolium pratense L. Journal of Ethnopharmacology 2019;238:111865. doi:10.1016/j.jep.2019.111865
8. Tava A, Pecio Ł, Stochmal A, Pecetti L. Clovamide and flavonoids from leaves of Trifolium pratense and T. pratense subsp. nivale grown in Italy. Natural Product Communications 2015;10(6):933–936.
9. Wang SWJ, Chen Y, Joseph T, Hu M. Variable isoflavone content of red clover products affects intestinal disposition of biochanin A, formononetin, genistein, and daidzein. The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine 2008;14(3):287–297. doi:10.1089/acm.2007.0617
10. Kołodziejczyk-Czepas J. Trifolium species — the latest findings on chemical profile, ethnomedicinal use and pharmacological properties. Journal of Pharmacy and Pharmacology 2016;68(7):845–861. doi:10.1111/jphp.12568
11. Edwards SE, da Costa Rocha I, Williamson EM, Heinrich M. Phytopharmacy: An Evidence-Based Guide to Herbal Medicinal Products. Wiley-Blackwell, 2015.
12. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), National Institutes of Health. Red Clover. Last updated April 2025. nccih.nih.gov