Sourced in Scandinavia, made in Denmark
Build a next‑generation
marine collagen with us.
Pre-commercial · In active development
A high-purity Type I & IV collagen from Scandinavian fish sidestreams, made in Denmark. We're in active development and looking for formulators and brands to co-create with. Partners get early access to samples.
Where we are
We're pre-commercial and in active product development at lab scale. Rather than launch a finished ingredient, we're inviting a small group of formulation partners to shape it with us (informing the spec, the target applications, and the documentation) and to be first in line for samples. Spots in that sample funnel are limited.
Become a co-formulation partner →The difference
Why fish skeleton matters
01
Skeleton, not skin
Every marine collagen isolate on the market is derived from fish skin, which is predominantly Type I. We start from the skeleton instead. Published research describes a broader collagen profile in skeletal and connective tissue. In our raw material, both Type I and Type IV collagen are present, an unusual combination for a marine source.
Reference (third-party literature): T. Aspevik et al. (2024). "A Comparative Study of Collagen Proteins in Skin, Bones, and Guts of Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar L.) and Atlantic Cod (Gadus morhua)." Journal of Aquatic Food Product Technology, 33(8), 683–696.
02
Upcycled marine sidestream
Our raw material is the fish skeleton: backbones and frames that are a sidestream of the fishing industry, today discarded or down-valued. We turn that under-used sidestream into a high-purity collagen input, keeping value inside the ocean economy rather than sending it to waste.
03
Cleaner source, fewer allergens
Wild-caught, traceable, and free from any land animal. Halal, kosher, and pescatarian friendly, without the BSE risk of bovine collagen or the parvalbumin contamination associated with skin-derived marine collagen. The fish skeleton sidestream is flesh-free by nature, separating it from the muscle tissue where the primary fish food allergen resides.
Reference (third-party literature): Hjelle et al., "Tissue-based skin prick test extracts from Atlantic salmon containing occupationally relevant allergens," Frontiers in Allergy, 2025
Our co-development thesis
The Type IV opportunity
Most collagen supplements target the dermis via Type I. Type IV plays a different role: it's a key component of the dermal-epidermal junction, the layer that anchors the skin's surface. Published research links age-related Type IV decline to reduced anchoring in this layer.
We believe a marine raw material carrying Type IV alongside Type I is worth investigating as a differentiated beauty-from-within input, and we're looking for a partner to help us test that hypothesis properly. We're not claiming a proven effect; we're proposing a promising, testable direction.
Type IV is a hypothesis we want to validate, not a claimed benefit. That's the heart of the co-development invitation.
Help us test it →In development
The ingredient we're developing
These are the targets we're developing toward, and part of what we'll define together with our formulation partners. They're development goals, not finalised specifications.
- Lead attribute
- High collagen purity
- Collagen types
- Type I & Type IV
- Target appearance
- White powder
- Target taste & odor
- Neutral
- Solubility goal
- Cold-water soluble
- Source
- Scandinavian fish skeleton (backbones & frames)
- Origin
- Sourced in Scandinavia, made in Denmark
- Suitable for
- Halal · Kosher · Pescatarian
More than an ingredient. Build it with us.
Where it could go
Built for your product portfolio
We're developing a collagen peptide designed to integrate across standard supplement and beverage delivery formats, from capsules and gummies to RTD drinks and on-the-go powders. Which formats we prioritise is part of the co-development conversation.
Capsules
Hard-shell and softgel formats for daily wellness and targeted dosing.
Tablets
Compressed supplements for beauty-from-within and functional nutrition formulations.
Gummies
Chewable nutricosmetics and functional gummies with excellent dispersibility.
Powders & stick packs
Bulk powders, sachets, and ready-to-mix sticks for shakes and functional drinks.
Beverages & shots
RTD cans and concentrated wellness shots with fast-dispersing peptides.
Circular economy
From sidestream
to solution
We process underutilized marine sidestreams into high-purity collagen. Every batch starts with fish skeleton that would otherwise go to waste, turning a byproduct of the fishing industry into a traceable ingredient, with a process designed with net-zero in mind.
Upcycled from fishing industry sidestreams
Wild-caught, sustainably sourced
Traceable supply chain
Sourced in Scandinavia, made in Denmark
Partner with us
Become a co-formulation partner
We're selecting a small number of co-formulation partners. You'd help shape the ingredient spec and target applications, get early access to development samples, and have a direct line to our team. If you formulate or brand in beauty-from-within, functional nutrition, or marine actives, we'd like to talk.
- Shape the ingredient spec and target applications
- Early access to development samples (Q1 2027)
- A direct line to our founding team
Sample material is planned for Q1 2027. Because we're still operating at lab scale, spots in the sample funnel are limited. This is an invitation to a conversation and early sample access, not a product for sale yet.
About us
A Nordic marine biotech company
Marine collagen is booming, but almost every product on the market is made from fish skin, which yields predominantly Type I collagen. We started from a different question: what is the highest-value ingredient we can make from an under-used marine sidestream?
Our answer is a high-purity marine collagen extracted from Scandinavian whitefish skeleton: backbones and frames that are currently discarded or down-valued. Uniquely for a marine source, this raw material carries Type I collagen with Type IV present. We're now in active development, working with formulation partners to define the spec, the target applications, and the documentation.
We source in Scandinavia and make in Denmark, using a process designed with net-zero in mind, so skeleton-derived collagen can be not just a differentiated ingredient, but a more responsible one.
Mermaid Proteins is a brand of BlueLoop Protein ApS.
The founders
