GELITA to showcase collagen excipient technology at BIO International 2026

GELITA is pushing collagen out of the food aisle and into the regulated world of capsules, tablets and microencapsulation. The company said on June 12 that it would showcase its latest excipient technology at BIO International 2026 in San Diego, a move that underscores how protein ingredient makers are chasing growth in pharma and delivery systems as aggressively as they once chased nutrition.

BIO International 2026 is set for June 22-25 at the San Diego Convention Center, where BIO says the convention will draw attendees from more than 70 countries and more than 20,000 industry leaders. That backdrop matters for GELITA, which described itself as a global leader in collagen protein solutions and says it has more than 150 years of experience. Showing up at BIO, rather than only at food-industry gatherings, signals a broader ambition: connect collagen science to biotech, life sciences and formulation work that reaches well beyond supplements and functional foods.

The company’s pharmaceutical and medical-device portfolio shows how far that strategy already extends. GELITA says its pharmaceutical-grade gelatin is used as an excipient in hard and soft capsules, tablets and microencapsulation technologies. Its medical-device material MEDELLAPRO® is described as a highly specialized, endotoxin-controlled gelatin used in tissue scaffolds, plasma expanders, hemostatic agents, wound care and 3D-bioprinted medical devices. Taken together, those applications place collagen-derived materials inside product categories where performance, safety and regulatory consistency carry as much weight as raw ingredient supply.

This is not a sudden pivot. GELITA issued a similar exhibitor announcement for BIO International 2025 in Boston, suggesting an annual push to keep its name visible in the biotech and pharmaceutical corridor. The company has also filed patents related to synthetic, recombinant and nutritionally optimized collagen peptides, another sign that its science agenda reaches into higher-value technical markets. In its health materials, GELITA continues to frame collagen as the most abundant protein in the human body and positions collagen peptides for skin, joints, bones, tendons, ligaments, muscles and fasciae.

The broader market signal is hard to miss. Protein companies are no longer competing only on cost, tonnage or taste. They are competing on platform value, with collagen emerging as a cross-industry capability that can serve nutrition, wellness, drug delivery and biomedical innovation at once. GELITA’s BIO appearance makes that diversification visible.