How to check what a collagen supplement is actually made from

By Tom Francis·Updated 2026-09-03·3 sources·Editorial policy

Why this needs checking at all

Collagen is a structural protein found in animal skin, bone and connective tissue. Every collagen supplement is made from an animal, and the word collagen on a front of pack tells a buyer nothing about which one.

In a rugby squad that matters more than it might elsewhere, because products get passed around changing rooms and nobody reads the panel first. A player avoiding fish, avoiding beef, or with an allergy needs to know before taking a capsule someone handed them.

The four sources

Marine collagen comes from fish, usually skin and scales, and is predominantly type 1. Bovine comes from cattle hide and bone and carries type 1 with some type 3. Porcine comes from pigs and is used in some products and in gelatin. Chicken sternum is the usual source of type 2, which is the cartilage associated type.

None is vegan and none is vegetarian. That is worth saying plainly because collagen is marketed heavily to an audience that includes a lot of people who assume otherwise.

Vegan collagen, which is not collagen

Products sold as vegan collagen or collagen builders contain nutrients involved in the body's own collagen synthesis, typically vitamin C, sometimes amino acids, sometimes silica or zinc.

They contain no collagen, because collagen is an animal protein. That is not necessarily dishonest labelling, since the ingredients are listed, and it is easily misread. The useful check is simply whether the ingredients list names collagen at all. If it does not, the product is a vitamin C product with a name doing a lot of work.

Where the allergen information lives

Allergens must be emphasised within the ingredients list, usually in bold or capitals. Fish is one of the fourteen declared allergens in the UK, so a marine collagen product will carry it there.

Check the ingredients list rather than the front of pack, and check the capsule material separately, because the shell is a distinct ingredient from the contents. Futuro Labs Marine Collagen is fish derived in a size 00 vegetarian capsule, which means the contents and the shell have different dietary implications and both need reading.

Shellfish, which is a separate allergen

Marine collagen from fish is not the same as shellfish, and the two are separate declared allergens. Someone with a shellfish allergy is not automatically affected by a fish derived product.

That said, some marine collagens are derived from shellfish rather than fish, and cross contamination statements vary by manufacturer. Anyone with either allergy should read the specific label rather than generalising, and ask a pharmacist if a statement is unclear.

Sustainability and provenance claims

Wild caught, sustainably sourced, and named fishery claims appear on some marine collagen products. Certification schemes exist for fisheries and a product carrying one will name the scheme.

Unqualified sustainability wording without a named scheme is marketing. It is not a quality signal about what is in the capsule and it should not be read as one, in the same way that premium and pharmaceutical grade are not.

The whole check

• Find the source on the ingredients list: marine, bovine, porcine or chicken.
• Check the type: type 1 for tendon, ligament, skin and bone.
• Check for emphasised allergen wording, particularly fish.
• Check the capsule material separately from the contents.
• If the product says vegan collagen, check whether collagen appears in the ingredients at all.
• Treat unqualified sustainability wording as marketing unless a scheme is named.
• Confirm the collagen is hydrolysed.

Gelatin, which is the same protein in a different state

Gelatin is denatured collagen, and it turns up in far more places than a supplement aisle.

It is in jelly, marshmallows, many desserts and a large number of capsule shells, and it is usually bovine or porcine. That matters for anyone avoiding either on dietary or religious grounds, and it is easily missed because a capsule shell is a separate ingredient from the contents.

The clearest example on this site is Futuro Labs Omega 3 Fish Oil, which is fish oil in a bovine gelatin softgel, so the contents and the shell rule out different groups. Futuro Labs Marine Collagen uses a size 00 vegetarian capsule with fish derived contents, which is the same situation inverted. Reading both lines is the only way to know.

Where to go next

• How to read a marine collagen labelThe full label method, including the vitamin C that decides whether a claim can be made.
• Marine or bovine collagen for rugby players?The source decision once you can read both labels.
• Futuro Labs Marine Collagen: the full labelSource, type, vitamin C, zinc and cost per day.

Questions players ask

Sources

• Food supplements guidance, gov.uk
• EFSA register of nutrition and health claims
• Vitamin C enriched gelatin supplementation before intermittent activity augments collagen synthesis