Organic Gelatin? Yes!

Gelatin - what is it?

Gelatin is lightweight, unpleasant and odorless and is commonly used in food, cosmetics and pharmaceuticals. Gelatin is used primarily as a thickening or emulsifying agent and can be purchased in powder or sheet form. It is also available in a wide range of foods, from desserts, ice cream, jelly and yoghurt to cream cheese, marshmallows, gummy bears, aspic and margarine.

Gelatin is a high-grade protein derived from animal collagen through a process known as hydrolysis. They are usually made from cattle or pig products, especially skin or bone. Less common, but essential for halal or halal diets, is gelatin made from fish.

For vegetarian diets try jelly, pectin, carrageen or aromatic gums as an alternative gelling agent.

Nutrition Value & Health Benefits

Gelatin contains 18 amino acids, of which 9 are essential to humans. It is an excellent source of the essential amino acids Lysine. And while it's not complete as a single source of protein, gelatin makes it a nutritious addition to your daily diet. It contains no fat, cholesterol or carbohydrates, is free from any additives and is easily digested.

Several studies have shown that gelatin not only promotes healthy hair and nails, but also improves bone and cartilage health. Specifically 2 of the amino acids contained in gelatin (Glycine and Proline) are required to produce collagen, a key component of connective tissue such as cartilage. Thanks to Lysine, Gelatin also appears to benefit athletes for muscle growth and metabolism.

Quality Concerns - Go Organic!

So, you are a conscious consumer, determined to keep eggs from factories and poultry full of growth hormones and antibiotics; But what about the quality of gelatin products on the market?

In fact the quality is very different and influenced by the refining and cleaning process during production. But more importantly the quality is determined by the initial ingredients used for gelatin production. To end with a high quality product you must start with high quality ingredients, in this case healthy animals, raised in a pure environment. If you try to avoid meat from inhumane mass production factories, it only makes sense to set the same standards for all other animal and by-product products.

For products such as gelatin to receive organic certification, organic standards must be followed from the start by farms raising animals to the end of production and packaging lines.

As the supply of organic meat has grown rapidly, one can easily assume that organic gelatin is also readily available - which has been the case for some parts of Europe, but not for Canada and the United States. Interestingly, it has not been commercially available in North America until recently.

It's good news that this has changed: Certified Organic Gelatin is now commercially available under the GoBIO brand !. You can buy it online, at http://www.gobiofood.ca, but it's also starting to appear in local health food stores and colleges around Canada and is expected soon in the US as well.

There are some concerns about gelatin derived from cow collagen, due to BSE, also known as 'mad cow disease'. Although studies have shown that the gelatin production process destroys most of the BSE that may be present in raw materials, there are still concerns. This issue can easily be avoided by using pork-based gelatin exclusively, such as GoBIO! brand.

Users, we now have a choice! We can be happy with jellin's. go, reap the benefits while enjoying the jiggly consistency it offers.

Organic Gelatin? Yes!


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