Challenges Associated With Fish Gelatin

Compared to bovine and porcine gelatin, the market share of
fish gelatin is still considered very small. Some limiting factors that
hamper the large-scale development of the fish gelatin industry include;

1. Inferior rheological properties – thus far, fish gelatin has limited
applications because the gels formed tend to have inferior
rheological properties as compared to gelatin from land
mammals. This limitation has been
attributed mainly to the lack of proline-rich regions of the
collagen or gelatin molecules in cold-water fish compared to
warm-blooded animals.

2.Gelatin manufacturers have found it difficult to provide
adequate quantities of a particular fish type on a regular and
consistent basis. This primarily applies to warm-water fish.

3. Another factor that could pose a problem is the difficulty to
obtain certification on fish raw material. Certification is
required for traceability, which has become an essential
requirement for food additives, especially from animal sources.

4. Variable gelatin quality due to variable composition of source materials.

5. Other intrinsic quality factors; these include odor, color, Bloom
strength, and viscosity of fish gelatin. The technical difficulties
associated with producing fish gelatin for human consumption
generally surround the elimination of the unpleasant fish odor
from the product. Persisting residual odor in fish gelatin can
cause problems especially when the fish gelatin is intended for
use in mildly flavored products.

6. Fish gelatin is sold at 4-5 times more expensive as compared to bovine or porcine gelatin