At present, most of the collagen supplements available in the market come in the form of powder or glass-bottled beverages.
Against the backdrop, Incontech hopes to value-add the way collagen is consumed by simplifying the dosage format and providing a more effective formula.
“What I realised is that, in the last seven, eight years, the collagen products which were available in Singapore were very basic formulations.
“Also, there was never really a very convenient product in the market. You have companies which are trying to make shots, which is a good idea if you drink it at home. The problem with bottles is that they are heavy and the consumers wouldn’t want to buy them,” Incontech’s director, Eff Taeger, told NutraIngredients-Asia.
Learning from the market success seen in Japan and South Korea, the firm decided to sell collagen in the form of jelly packs.
Selling under the brand name Shizuku, the pomegranate-flavoured collagen jelly is produced with nano tri-collagen peptide technology.
Not a number game
Product formula and taste were the most crucial factors to take note of when developing a collagen product, said Taeger.
“In Singapore, some brands tried to do collagen jelly but the acceptance wasn't really there and we believe it was because the taste of jelly was never good and also the formula.
“Because if you are going to take something daily, it has to taste good, otherwise, you will take it one or two days and you will forget about it and you will never buy the product again.
As for the formula, he stressed that the types of collagen and not simply the amount of collagen available in the product, was the key to ensuring product efficacy.
For the firm, its product is made from marine collagen that is hydrolysed into tri-peptide collagen. Each jelly pack provides 3,000mg of collagen.
“A lot of people will just read the amount of collagen stated on the bottle and they go by the number, so its 3,000, 5,000, 10,000, they believe that the higher the number, the better the product. Unfortunately, this is not true. The quality of the collagen is key.
“According to our studies, a good dosage for a three peptide collagen is about 3,000mg per day, you do not need anything more than this. The effects will not be drastically better,” he said.
On the other hand, the source and the type of collagen used, whether it is type I/II/III and whether it is hydrolysed into smaller sizes for absorption are also determining factors.
“The normal collagen has three strands and is a helix molecule…You have to break this down to come to a molecular bond of three, a three peptide collagen. This is able to penetrate your capillary veins and start rebuilding your collagen and replenish it.”
Trial results
According to a product trial conducted by the firm, it was found that consuming the product for eight weeks could increase the skin moisture level and texture by twice.
The study involved 54 females between 35 and 50 years old who had similar skin conditions in terms of moisture level and skin texture.
The intervention group took the product – equivalent to 3,000mg of collagen per day – and evaluation took place in the form of corneometer and skin surface analyser.
After four weeks, the skin moisture level of the intervention group became 1.5 times higher than the control group. Further improvement was seen after eight weeks, where the skin moisture level in the intervention group was two times higher than the control group.