Biomimetic vegan collagen VeCollal boasts “identical to human” amino acid profile

07 Sep 2021 --- A star ingredient in ingestible beauty, collagen is seeing its plant-based alternatives rise, in tandem with a growing need for supplements that benefit the skin from within. Tony Van Campen, founder of VeCollal, speaks to PersonalCareInsights about the company’s “identical to human type 1 collagen, from an amino acid profile aspect,” which naturally stimulates collagen production and can be used in functional foods and supplements.

Dr. Josué Jiménez Vázquez, a collagen expert, unraveled a specific amino acid profile within human collagen through bioinformatics and machine learning using his proprietary technology Biomdrin. This technology led to the creation of VeCollal.

“It has the exact same amino acid profile as human type 1 collagen and can therefore be considered a biomimetic,” Van Campen says. “Interest in the product is massive as it caters to the current consumer’s trends and sensitivities.”

“Rising awareness of animal cruelty but also sustainability and health concerns are the driving factors behind this. Combine this with the growing collagen market and you see that VeCollal is a response to trending market demands.”

Collagen building blocks
Human collagen is made of amino acids in a triple helix structure, Van Campen explains. The amino acid profile is very specific and research has shown that ingesting collagen peptides from animal sources provides the body with the amino acids necessary to produce collagen.

“However, animal collagen is not the same as human collagen and lacks amino acids that are essential to humans, such as L-tryptophan.”

“Besides providing the perfect supply of ‘building blocks,’ VeCollal also contains three inductors that will signal the body to produce collagen, using the amino acids supplied.” 

“It is a science-based alternative for animal collagen, and there are very valid reasons for looking at plant-based alternatives.”

The reasons, according to Van Campen, include:

• Animal well-being: Collagen is made from the hides, hooves, scales and other parts of animals. This makes it unsuitable for the growing number of people wanting to avoid animal products.
• Sustainability: Livestock production produces over 14 percent of all human-produced greenhouse gas emissions, a major cause of global warming.
• Heavy metal contamination: Less reputable brands of collagen have been known to test positive for arsenic, lead and cadmium.
• Heterogeneity among species: There are distinct differences between human and animal collagen.

Vegan and effective
VeCollal is produced using only vegan amino acids obtained through fermentation processes of plant sources. 

“The formulation and principles of VeCollal are supported by over 50 reference studies and clinical studies to evaluate the effectiveness as compared to traditional collagen supplements are being planned.”

“With the support of all the underlying studies, we feel confident it will perform very well,” Van Campen asserts. “As it is made up of individual amino acids, the body can easily digest it.”

Applications and new markets
In the first phase, VeCollal will be offered as a powder for food supplements in the beauty-from-within space. “As it is very soluble, it can easily be used by adding it to a glass of water, making it very easy and convenient to use.”

VeCollal can also be used for creams and topical applications. However, it lends itself to many other forms, so tablets, capsules, gummies, bars, liquid shots and gels are all possible products being developed now.

VeCollal can also be used for creams and topical applications. “This will be a second phase as the delivery system for the ingredients needs to be further developed,” Van Campen says.

The company says it is looking to launch VeCollal with one of the biggest UK health nutrition brands in Q1 2022 but didn’t disclose further details on the matter. Moreover, it supports that it is experiencing significant interest from brands all over Europe, the US, China and Korea.

“At this point, VeCollal is determining which partners and brands to launch with per territory. We will most likely first hit the UK market, but there are ongoing talks with other territories as well.”

Vegan collagen market
Several industry players are tapping into the potential of alternative collagens with NPD ranging from vegan to marine and even “human” collagen types.

Recently, Canadian brand Revelox launched Dermalux, an anti-aging marine collagen formulation touted as offering “firm skin, shiny hair and healthy nails.” Meanwhile, Ajinomoto Health & Nutrition’s Indigo Marine Collagen brand expanded its line of marine collagen to add tropical flavors.

Evonik previously developed an advanced collagen platform produced via fermentation-based processes without any animal or human-derived ingredients, while South Korean company Cosmax launched Agatri, an ingestible beauty product touted for its anti-aging collagen-boosting and skin-improving properties.

In notable launches, ecocentric biodesign company Geltor unveiled the first-ever “human collagen” created for cosmetic formulations, coined HumaColl21. HumaColl21 is produced with “zero animal inputs” and is touted as having maximum biocompatibility with human skin cells. 

By Kristiana Lalou