What does the cryptic crossword clue "Mineral starts to transform and loses colour (4)" mean?

The definition is "Mineral". The wordplay uses a charade (building blocks). T (first_letter="to") + A (first_letter="and") + L (first_letter="loses") + C (first_letter="colour") = TALC; definition: "Mineral" The answer is TALC.

Mineral starts to transform and loses colour (4)

Guardian Cryptic #26985 | 22 Across | 2016-09-09 flower

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