Collagen industry debates vegan viability and overcoming COVID-19 hurdles

29 Apr 2020 --- A staple ingredient within the health and wellness category, collagen maintains a steady course of growth, with pronounced focus on joint health, skin care and sports nutrition. NutritionInsight speaks to key players in the collagen segment who explain how they are coping with challenges presented by the COVID-19 outbreak, as well as whether vegan collagen is a viable alternative and a trend that is here to stay.

Previously, suppliers discussed how they are adapting to shifts in the collagen category, as new approaches to bone and joint health and innovative forms of collagen are challenging “classic” ingredients. Meanwhile, increased consumer demand for environmentally friendly ingredients has opened up a market for alternative collagen sources.

Thriving despite COVID-19 challenges
Around the world, governments remain in an emergency state due to COVID-19, which has imminent and potentially grave repercussions for the global economy. However, some sectors are affected more than others, with the supplements space seeing growth. Within this, the collagen segment is also benefiting, having avoided major disruptions in business, the experts report.

Yingying Wu, Global Product Marketing Manager Collagen Peptides at PB Leiner.“Collagen sales have been very strong this year, possibly as consumers stock up on all types of supplements. Naturally, consumers’ top concerns revolve around immunity, so we have started to see some companies shift their new product launch priorities’ focus toward immunity at the expense of all other non-immunity segments, including collagen,” says Juliana Erickson, Global Marketing Manager for Consumer Health and Nutrition at Lonza. 

Lonza is in the process of launching UC-II (its proprietary undenatured collagen) made from organic chicken, unencumbered by the outbreak, Erickson adds.

“We’re obviously in the midst of this pandemic and we have seen that people are taking an even more proactive approach to health. This has been reflected in high sales of supplements, vitamins and minerals. We are also seeing this trend in collagen, as our customers and brands with a strong emphasis on e-commerce are experiencing the highest growth levels,” notes Yingying Wu, Global Product Marketing Manager Collagen Peptides at PB Leiner. 

However, Wu also explains that businesses that rely heavily on traditional sales channels such as retail stores and pharmacies are struggling with the significant drop in shoppers as a result of lockdown in many countries. The customers and brands suffering most from lockdown are those that mainly sell via fitness stores and sports centers. The long-term impact on disposable income for the consumption of health supplements is yet to be determined, she says.

Jaume Reguant, Healthcare Director at Bioiberica, says that as an essential service, Bioiberica remains committed to supporting its customers and continues to operate as usual, despite a few small logistical issues due to the cancellation of air transport and restrictions concerning the exportation of goods.

“At Gelita, we are in a good position, all our production plants are in operation and our customers are continuing to place orders. We are part of a system-relevant industry and as such we feel privileged to be able to contribute to the food and pharmaceutical supply. At the same time, however, this is also a responsibility that we all have to fulfil every day,” notes Oliver Wolf, Head of B2B Marketing, Global Marketing & Communication at Gelita.

For Rousselot, the impact of COVID-19 is felt, but the company is tackling it successfully. “We have operations and sales teams across the globe so we saw the spread very clearly, but we can continue our business as best as possible. Our teams in the plants stay mobilized and are committed to keep our essential operations running while we can work from home, under the circumstances,” highlights Lisette Van Lith, Global Director Health & Nutrition at Rousselot.

“We have analyzed the situation whereby our customers feel a lack of demand in on-the-go snacking or sports-related products. In these sectors, business is slowing down. For the nutrition industry, our clients across the world are classified as essential businesses, so they don’t get the full impact of the situation and online sales channels are also providing solutions with sales continuing almost as usual,” adds Van Lith.

“Due to the cancellation or rescheduling of major nutraceutical events, and current focus on supplying the basics in the retail sector, we believe a lot of collagen players are slowing down their product launches and instead are waiting for a more opportune moment,” Wu says.

Some businesses, on the other hand, are overcoming these obstacles by launching and promoting new products via digital channels and social media, she adds. In any case, the collagen market continues to grow rapidly and collagen industry players (both ingredient suppliers and end-producers) are working hard on new product development and long-term R&D projects, even in the midst of the coronavirus pandemic.

It is no surprise that alternatives to traditional collagen are emerging.Is vegan collagen a fad?
With vegan diets being an overarching industry trend, it is no surprise that alternatives to traditional collagen are emerging. Last month, Evonik developed an advanced collagen platform produced via fermentation-based processes without any animal or human-derived ingredients. So far, the production of “vegan” collagen has been a challenge for the industry, but other major players including Gelita and Geltor are also making moves in the space.

“In the long-term, there will likely be a place for vegan collagen within the market, as there is for vegan alternatives in food, fashion and cosmetics. However, in the short-term, vegan collagen products still need to prove their efficacy and safety to be able to compete with animal-derived collagen ingredients. Fermentation-origin collagens have been proven to provide some benefits in specific areas, such as cosmetics, but have yet to be shown as a viable nutraceutical application,” says Bioiberica’s Reguant.

Rousselot’s Van Lith notes that the biotechnology for vegan collagen is still in its infancy. “Many products can be produced by biotechnology but the question is, are the products going to have the same health and functional benefits?”

“At this time, it is unclear if they can compete with a naturally sourced collagen and if their price can be a sustainable one. That said, where there is a consumer, there will always be a market. So indeed, there might be a demand for vegan collagen but there is space in the market for all of us,” Van Lith says.

Vegan collagen is here to stay, according to Lonza’s Erickson. “Consumers are turning their back to animal-based products based on environmental, health or ethical concerns, and we don’t see that changing. Unfortunately, we’re still years away from an alternative that is as efficacious as traditional collagen,” she flags.

Gelita’s Wolf says that this is certainly not a fad and it will only become more relevant in the future. However, he says that despite the initial promising achievements in the vegan alternatives, collagen produced by biotechnology on an industrial scale is still far from being a reality. 

“We are working on promising concepts and solutions to enable collagen peptides that are not derived from animal sources. We are also in cooperation with other companies in this area. However, for the time being, collagen is per definition a protein of animal origin,” he adds.

“The vegan collagen trend is definitely in line with some of the other global consumer trends. Nevertheless, before vegan collagen can become mainstream, there are many barriers and challenges to be overcome. These include regulatory issues, safety, organoleptic properties, production costs, health benefits and clinical studies that prove its benefits,” concludes PB Leiner’s Wu. 

By Kristiana Lalou