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Gelatine

What the research shows

Prototype

Unclear

the research on this page hasn’t settled it

3 health findings on this page · See the findings

A food ingredient made from animal body parts.

It is used to make foods like jelly, gummy candy and marshmallows set.

Written from English Wikipedia1

  • Not vegan
  • Not vegetarian

What research says

Studies in people

  • Benefit

    Collagen building with exercise2

    In people, taking gelatine with vitamin C before exercise doubled signs of new collagen, which may help prevent injuries.

  • Open question

    Growth hormone release3

    In women, eating gelatine raised growth hormone more than soy, milk or alpha-lactalbumin did.

Animal and lab studies only

  • Open question

    Cell effects in lab7

    In lab studies, gelatine and its broken-down pieces may have effects on cells, but this is still being studied.

How it’s made and used

  • Gel quality from fish4

    Gelatine from fish skins can set and melt at different temperatures than gelatine from pigs or cows.

  • Food texture and stability5

    Gelatine helps foods hold water, stay firm and keep their shape, and is used in meats, dairy, sweets and drinks.

  • Food source labelling6

    Gelatine in food can come from pork, beef or fish, and labels often do not say which.

The signal at the top counts the findings in people and in animal and lab studies. A concern in studies of people outranks animal and lab studies, and “No concerns” needs at least two findings in people. Findings whose study type is not stated are shown but not counted. This page is a reference, not medical advice. It describes what regulators and published research say. Talk to a doctor or dietitian about your own diet.

Regulatory status

Checked Sep 2026

Status reflects the named register on the date checked. It is not a safety rating. A country appears here once we've found this ingredient on its official list.

How we check

Products

The 6 most-scanned of 13,127 products on Open Food Facts that list gelatine.

  • Vanilla Flavour High Protein Mousse Milbona · 175 gram 6 additives
  • Secret de mousse La Laitière · 236 g 3 additives
  • Bourn Vita 500Gram Pauch Cadbury 10 additives
  • Fruit Snacks Welch's · 0.8 oz (22.7 g) 6 additives
  • High protein vanilla pudding Milbona · 4 x 115 g 7 additives
  • Chocolate & Topping Ehrmann · 200 g 7 additives

References

  1. 1Gelatin. Wikipedia. Accessed September 25, 2026.
  2. 2Shaw G, Lee-Barthel A, Ross ML, Wang B, Baar K. Vitamin C-enriched gelatin supplementation before intermittent activity augments collagen synthesis. Am J Clin Nutr. 2017;105(1):136-143. doi:10.3945/ajcn.116.138594
  3. 3van Vught AJ, Nieuwenhuizen AG, Veldhorst MA, Brummer RJ, Westerterp-Plantenga MS. The effects of dietary protein on the somatotropic axis: a comparison of soy, gelatin, alpha-lactalbumin and milk. Eur J Clin Nutr. 2010;64(5):441-6. doi:10.1038/ejcn.2010.21
  4. 4Boran G, Regenstein JM. Fish gelatin. Adv Food Nutr Res. 2010;60:119-43. doi:10.1016/S1043-4526(10)60005-8
  5. 5Ahmad MI, Li Y, Pan J, et al. Collagen and gelatin: Structure, properties, and applications in food industry. Int J Biol Macromol. 2024;254(Pt 3):128037. doi:10.1016/j.ijbiomac.2023.128037
  6. 6Hassan N, Ahmad T, Zain NM. Chemical and Chemometric Methods for Halal Authentication of Gelatin: An Overview. J Food Sci. 2018;83(12):2903-2911. doi:10.1111/1750-3841.14370
  7. 7Liu D, Nikoo M, Boran G, Zhou P, Regenstein JM. Collagen and gelatin. Annu Rev Food Sci Technol. 2015;6:527-57. doi:10.1146/annurev-food-031414-111800