Marine Collagen, Vitamin C & Zinc Powder

The backbone of this blend is hydrolysed type I collagen recovered from the skin and scale of marine fish. Intact collagen is a triple helix of roughly 300,000 daltons, far too large to disperse usefully in a drink; controlled enzymatic hydrolysis cuts it to peptides that typically average 2,000 to 5,000 daltons, with sub-3,000 dalton and around 1,000 dalton builds available where cold-water solubility and mouthfeel are the priority. A working peptide specification is protein at 90 to 95 per cent minimum on the dry basis, total nitrogen at 15.5 per cent minimum, loss on drying at 7 per cent maximum and sulphated ash at 2.0 per cent maximum. Identity is confirmed on hydroxyproline, specified at 5 per cent minimum and running at roughly 6 to 12 per cent of the molar amino acid profile in fish skin collagen. One honest caveat belongs in every technical file: glycine, proline and hydroxyproline dominate the profile and collagen carries no tryptophan, so this is a functional protein ingredient and must not be positioned as a complete protein. The two micronutrients are conventional and tightly defined. Vitamin C is L-ascorbic acid, CAS 50-81-7, C6H8O6, molecular weight 176.12, at USP assay 99.0 to 100.5 per cent. Zinc is supplied as bisglycinate, CAS 14281-83-5 at 28 per cent zinc minimum; as citrate, CAS 546-46-3 at not less than 31.3 per cent zinc under USP; or as gluconate, CAS 4468-02-4 at 13.9 to 14.6 per cent zinc anhydrous. The payload sets both the overage and the mouthfeel, and gluconate needs a little over twice the citrate weight for the same declared zinc. A common reference build is a 10 g scoop delivering 9 g collagen peptides, 80 mg vitamin C and 10 mg zinc, which is 100 per cent of the EU nutrient reference values in Annex XIII of Regulation (EU) 1169/2011. Under Regulation (EU) 432/2012 the authorised nutrient function claims for vitamin C in normal collagen formation for the normal function of skin, and for zinc in the maintenance of normal skin, are available where the serving is at least a source, meaning 12 mg vitamin C and 1.5 mg zinc; no authorised claim attaches to the collagen peptide itself and the artwork must not imply one. This product contains fish and the declaration is mandatory. The narrow EU Annex II exemption covers fish gelatine used as a carrier for vitamin or carotenoid preparations and as a fining agent in beer and wine; it does not cover hydrolysed fish collagen used as the principal ingredient, so 'contains fish' stands on the pack whatever the residual protein figure says. The blend is marine, not vegan, not vegetarian, and free of bovine and porcine material, which is frequently the reason a buyer specifies it in the first place; halal and kosher certification is available on request. On formulation, ascorbic acid is hygroscopic and sour, so the blend is filled at low moisture into a barrier pack and is usually finished with an acidity-masking flavour or a partial sodium ascorbate substitution. Thovek ships lot-specific certificates covering peptide assay, hydroxyproline, vitamin and mineral content, heavy metals and microbiology, and describes composition and established nutrient function only.