Gelita AG is a manufacturer of

gelatin Gelatin or gelatine (from la, gelatus meaning "stiff" or "frozen") is a translucent, colorless, flavorless food ingredient, commonly derived from collagen taken from animal body parts. It is brittle when dry and rubbery when moist. It may also ...

and

collagen Collagen () is the main structural protein in the extracellular matrix found in the body's various connective tissues. As the main component of connective tissue, it is the most abundant protein in mammals, making up from 25% to 35% of the whole ...

peptides for the food, health and nutrition,

pharmaceutical industries The pharmaceutical industry discovers, develops, produces, and markets drugs or pharmaceutical drugs for use as medications to be administered to patients (or self-administered), with the aim to cure them, vaccinate them, or alleviate symptoms. ...

and for several technical applications. It is headquartered in Eberbach, Germany. Founded in 1875, Gelita operates 21 production sites and 4 offices in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere at the northern tip of the continent. It can also be described as the southe ...

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

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and

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

. The plant in

Sergeant Bluff Sergeant Bluff is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, United States. It is part of the Sioux City, IA– NE– SD Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 5,015 at the time of the 2020 census. History The city was named in honor o ...

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, is the largest gelatin factory in the world.

History

The history of today's Gelita AG in Eberbach dates back to 1875, when the production of gelatin was started in

Schweinfurt Schweinfurt ( , ; ) is a city in the district of Lower Franconia in Bavaria, Germany. It is the administrative centre of the surrounding district (''Landkreis'') of Schweinfurt and a major industrial, cultural and educational hub. The urban agg ...

. Gelita was preceded by the founding of the "Gebrüder Köpff Company", Heinrich Koepff's small

tannery Tanning may refer to: *Tanning (leather), treating animal skins to produce leather *Sun tanning, using the sun to darken pale skin **Indoor tanning, the use of artificial light in place of the sun **Sunless tanning, application of a stain or dye t ...

, in 1883. Shaken by the economic crisis of the time, Heinrich saw a way out of his misery in gelatin production. The raw material for this could be purchased cheaply, as it was produced in the large tanneries as residual material. With around 60 employees, the factory was already producing photographic gelatin in 1884, which was an important material for the rapidly emerging photography in the 19th century. In 1887, the Koepff brothers acquired the competing company A. & C. Wolff in

Heilbronn Heilbronn () is a List of cities and towns in Germany, city in northern Baden-Württemberg, Germany, surrounded by Heilbronn (district), Heilbronn District. With over 126,000 residents, it is the sixth-largest city in the state. From the late Mid ...

. Both locations had 320 employees who produced 400 tonnes of gelatin per year. In 1901, a major fire destroyed large parts of the factory. The brothers quarreled over reconstruction. Heinrich went to Heilbronn and Paul Koepff continued to run the rebuilt plant alone under the name Göppinger Gelatin Factory Paul Koepff. In 1911, he sold the factory to DGF AG, which already operated gelatin factories in Schweinfurt and Höchst. Paul Koepff was henceforth on the board of directors and continued to manage his former company as director. In 1929, Paul Koepff jr. took over the management of the

Göppingen Göppingen ( Swabian: ''Geppenge'' or ''Gebbenga'') is a town in southern Germany, part of the Stuttgart Region of Baden-Württemberg. It is the capital of the district Göppingen. Göppingen is home to the toy company Märklin, and it is the b ...

plant from his father, who died in 1953. The Gelita

Brand A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's good or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create an ...

was introduced in 1934. In 1937, the DGF was accused of violating foreign trade regulations and leading employees were arrested. Stoess, on the other hand, had reestablished relations with Eastman Kodak in the United States and was bringing large quantities of much-needed foreign exchange to Germany. After the

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Paul Koepff Jr. became managing director of the Stoess company in Eberbach. In 1949, he built up a gelatin capsule factory there. In the course of the decades, DGF AG bought various factories worldwide. In 1965, it was taken over by the "Chem. Werke Stoess" in

Heidelberg Heidelberg (; Palatine German language, Palatine German: ''Heidlberg'') is a city in the States of Germany, German state of Baden-Württemberg, situated on the river Neckar in south-west Germany. As of the 2016 census, its population was 159,914 ...

. In that year Heinrich Koepff took over the majority of shares of the Göppingen plant and through his marriage to the granddaughter of the company founder, Gerda Stoess, the companies merged. In 1972, the association traded under the name DGF Stoess & Co. GmbH. In 1989, the company was converted into a public limited company. The gelatin production division was renamed the Gelita Group in 1999. In 2005, all entities started to sell gelatine under the brand name Gelita.

Products

Gelatin

In 2021, Gelatin is a translucent, colorless, flavorless food ingredient, commonly derived from collagen taken from animal body parts. Gelita ranked second in the gelatin category of FoodTalks' Global Food Thickener Companies List.

Collagen peptides

For oral supplementation in sectors like healthy aging, sports nutrition and beauty. Applications are for example food, drinks, cereals, bars and dietary supplements.

Fats, minerals and proteins

Are produced when collagen proteins are manufactured. The main areas of application for Fat, Mineral and Protein Ingredients are human food, pet food and animal feed. The fats, for example, serve as energy sources. Proteins can improve the texture and hence the enjoyability and digestibility of foodstuffs and animal feed. Further applications are in technical areas and are used in the manufacture of bone china, construction molds, lubricants for machines and anti-rust agents.

Hemostats

Hemostasis In biology, hemostasis or haemostasis is a process to prevent and stop bleeding, meaning to keep blood within a damaged blood vessel (the opposite of hemostasis is hemorrhage). It is the first stage of wound healing. This involves coagulation, whi ...

blood-staunching sponges for medical applications. They are used for injuries of the blood vessels to stop the bleeding for example during operations. Hemostats can be broken down by the body. For this reason, they remain in the body and the wound can stay closed.

Applications

The products based on collagen proteins are used for food, health and nutrition, pharmaceutical industries and technical applications for example Photo, Ballistic, Restoration, Lubricants, Technical detergents.

Organisation

Gelita AG is structured as a

holding company A holding company is a company whose primary business is holding a controlling interest in the securities of other companies. A holding company usually does not produce goods or services itself. Its purpose is to own shares of other companies ...

. The group is controlled from the headquarter in Eberbach (Germany).

Production sites

* West

Krugersdorp Krugersdorp (Afrikaans for ''Kruger's Town'') is a mining city in the West Rand, Gauteng Province, South Africa founded in 1887 by Marthinus Pretorius. Following the discovery of gold on the Witwatersrand, a need arose for a major town in the west ...

Beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). In prehistoric times, humankind hunted aurochs and later domesticated them. Since that time, numerous breeds of cattle have been bred specifically for the quality or quantity ...

Hide *

Liaoyuan Liaoyuan () is a prefecture-level city in Jilin province, People's Republic of China. It is bounded on the west and south by Tieling of Liaoning province, west and north by Siping, and east by Tonghua and Jilin City. Liaoyuan lies some south of C ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's most populous country, with a population exceeding 1.4 billion, slightly ahead of India. China spans the equivalent of five time zones and ...

Bone A bone is a Stiffness, rigid Organ (biology), organ that constitutes part of the skeleton in most vertebrate animals. Bones protect the various other organs of the body, produce red blood cell, red and white blood cells, store minerals, provid ...

* Pingyang, China, Pork Hide, Beef Hide * Eberbach, (HQ), Germany, Beef Hide, Bone * Göppingen, Germany, Pork

Skin Skin is the layer of usually soft, flexible outer tissue covering the body of a vertebrate animal, with three main functions: protection, regulation, and sensation. Other cuticle, animal coverings, such as the arthropod exoskeleton, have diffe ...

Memmingen Memmingen (; Swabian: ''Memmenge'') is a town in Swabia, Bavaria, Germany. It is the economic, educational and administrative centre of the Danube-Iller region. To the west the town is flanked by the Iller, the river that marks the Baden-Wü ...

, Germany, Bovine Bone Preparation *

Minden Minden () is a middle-sized town in the very north-east of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, the greatest town between Bielefeld and Hanover. It is the capital of the district (''Kreis'') of Minden-Lübbecke, which is part of the region of Detm ...

, Germany, Pork Skin *

Klippan, Scania Klippan (literally ''the Cliff'', old da, Klippen) is a locality and the seat of Klippan Municipality, Skåne County, Sweden with 8,116 inhabitants in 2010. The famous liberal economist Bertil Ohlin Bertil Gotthard Ohlin () (23 April 1899 – ...

, Sweden, Pork Skin * Ter Apelkanaal, Netherlands, Pork Skin * Ter Apelkanaal, Netherlands, Functional Proteins(

Joint Venture A joint venture (JV) is a business entity created by two or more parties, generally characterized by shared ownership, shared returns and risks, and shared governance. Companies typically pursue joint ventures for one of four reasons: to acces ...

) *

Sergeant Bluff, Iowa Sergeant Bluff is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, Woodbury County, Iowa, United States. It is part of the Sioux City, Iowa, Sioux City, IA–Nebraska, NE–South Dakota, SD Sioux City metropolitan area, Metropolitan Statistical Area. The p ...

, United States, Pork Skin Plant * Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, United States, Beef Hide Plant * Sergeant Bluff, Iowa, United States, CP Plant *

Calumet City, Illinois Calumet City ( ) is a city in Cook County, Illinois, Cook County, Illinois, United States. The population was 36,033 at the 2020 census, a decline of 2.7% from 37,042 in 2010. The ZIP code is 60409. Etymology The word ''Calumet'' is the Miꞌkmaq ...

, United States, Pork Skin *

Lerma, State of Mexico Lerma is a municipality located just east of Toluca and 54 km west of Mexico City in State of Mexico, Mexico. The municipal seat city of Lerma de Villada was founded in the early colonial period and named after the Duke of Lerma in Spain. The ...

* Leon, Mexico Pilsac (Joint Venture) * Mococa, SP,

Brasil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area an ...

, Beef Hide *

Cotia Cotia is a municipality in the state of São Paulo in Brazil. It is part of the Metropolitan Region of São Paulo. The population is 253,608 (2020 est.) in an area of 323.99 km². The city is at an elevation of 853 m. Cotia is linked with th ...

, Brasil, Milling/ Blending *

Maringá Maringá () is a municipality in southern Brazil founded on 10 May 1947 as a planned urban area. It is the third largest city in the state of Paraná, with 385,753 inhabitants in the city proper, and 764,906 in the metropolitan area (IBGE 2013). ...

, Brasil, Beef Hide * Beaudesert, Australia, Beef Hide *

Christchurch Christchurch ( ; mi, Ōtautahi) is the largest city in the South Island of New Zealand and the seat of the Canterbury Region. Christchurch lies on the South Island's east coast, just north of Banks Peninsula on Pegasus Bay. The Avon River / ...

Offices

Holmes Chapel Holmes Chapel is a large village and civil parish in the unitary authority area of Cheshire East and the ceremonial county of Cheshire, England. Until 1974 the parish was known as Church Hulme. Holmes Chapel is about north of Crewe and south ...

, United Kingdom *

Shanghai Shanghai (; , , Standard Mandarin pronunciation: ) is one of the four direct-administered municipalities of the People's Republic of China (PRC). The city is located on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the Huangpu River flow ...

, China *

Bangkok Bangkok, officially known in Thai language, Thai as Krung Thep Maha Nakhon and colloquially as Krung Thep, is the capital and most populous city of Thailand. The city occupies in the Chao Phraya River delta in central Thailand and has an estima ...

, Thailand *

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Japan

Subsidiaries

* Gelita Deutschland GmbH, Eberbach, Germany * ATRO ProVita GmbH, Eberbach, Germany * Gelita Health GmbH, Eberbach, Germany * Gelita Medical GmbH, Eberbach, Germany

Publications

* "Peptides Can Be Incorporated in the Diet While Maintaining Indispensable Amino Acid Balance", by Cristiana Paul, Suzane Leser and Steffen Oesser, 2019. * "Oral Supplementation of Specific Collagen Peptides Combined with Calf-Strengthening Exercises Enhances Function and Reduces Pain in Achilles Tendinopathy Patients", Stephan F.E. Praet, Craig R. Purdam, Marijke Welvaert, Nicole Vlahovich, Gregg Lovell, Louise M. Burke, Jamie E. Gaida, Silvia Manzanero, David Hughes and Gordon Waddington, January 2019. * "Impact of collagen hydrolysate in middle-aged athletes with knee and ankle osteochondral lesions: A case series", Fábio Krebs Gonçalves, August 2017 * "Improvement of Functional Ankle Properties Following Supplementation with Specific Collagen Peptides in Athletes with Chronic Ankle Instability", Patrick Dressler,Dominic Gehring, Denise Zdzieblik, Steffen Oesser, Albert Gollhofer and Daniel König, June 2018 * "Improved bone healing after oral application of specific bioactive collagen peptides", Knefeli HC, Mueller-Autz M, 2018 * "Specific Collagen Peptides Improve Bone Mineral Density and Bone Markers in Postmenopausal Women", Daniel König, Steffen Oesser, Stephan Scharla, Denise Zdzieblik and Albert Gollhofer, 2018 * "Manual therapy and eccentric exercise in the management of Achilles tendinopathy", Dhinu J. Jayaseelan, Michael Kecman, Daniel Alcorn and Josiah D. Sault, May 2017 * "Oral supplementation with specific bioactive collagen peptides improves nail growth and reduces symptoms of brittle nails", Doris Hexsel, Vivian Zague, Michael Schunck, Carolina Siega, Fernanda O. Camozzato, Steffen Oesser, August 2017 * "Effect of specific collagen peptides with various dosages on body composition in untrained men", D. Zdzieblik, S. Oesser, P. Dressler, A. Gollhofer and D. König, July 2017 * "Determination of serum biomarkers in osteoarthritis patients: a previous interventional imaging study revisited", Timothy McAlindon, Eckart Bartnik, Janina S. Ried, Lenore Teichert, Matthias Herrmann and Klaus Flechsenhar, January 2017* "Improvement of Knee Joint Discomfort in young athletes", Denise Zdzieblik, Steffen Oesser, Albert Gollhofer, Daniel Koenig, January 2017 * "Dietary Supplementation with Specific Collagen Peptides Has a Body Mass Index-Dependent Beneficial Effect on Cellulite Morphology", Michael Schunck, Vivian Zague, Steffen Oesser, and Ehrhardt Proksch, December 2015 * "Oral intake of specific bioactive collagen peptides reduces skin wrinkles and increases dermal matrix synthesis", E. Proksch, M. Schunck , V. Zague , D. Segger, J. Degwert , S. Oesser, December 2013 * "Oral Supplementation of Specific Collagen Peptides Has Beneficial Effects on Human Skin Physiology: A Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Study, E. Proksch, D. Segger, J. Degwert, M. Schunck, V. Zague, S. Oesser, August 2013

Awards

* German Innovation Award. Excellence in Business to Business – Pharmaceuticals, Winner 2019 German Innovation Award, Fortibone January 2020 * Nutra Ingredients Awards. Ingredient of the Year: Healthy Ageing – Fortibone, GELITA – 2018, Winner 2018, January 2020 * Life PR Award: German Innovation Award in gold for innovative detergent additive Novotec CB800, June 6, 2018 * Nutraceuticals World: Top 100 Innovative Companies in Germany, Category "Innovative Processes" * Cannes Corporate Media & TV Awards 2016: Four Dolphins for the company Video "You can see". Gold in category corporate videos and silver in the categories marketing films – B2B, information films and visitors films * German Brand Award for successful brand management in the category "Industry Excellence in Branding", 2016 * "Intermedia-globe Award" in gold, World Media Festival June 22, 2016 * Frost & Sullivan Award, "European Health Ingredient of the Year" – 2008 New Hope, "GELITA Wins Frost & Sullivan Award European Health Ingredient of the Year 2008"
GELITA Wins Frost & Sullivan Award "European Health Ingredient of the Year 2008
'. Yumda, October 16, 2008.

References

External links

Gelita AG

Gelita Health GmbH

Gelita Medical GmbH
{{Authority control Chemical companies of Germany Companies based in Baden-Württemberg Companies established in 1875 Manufacturing companies of Germany