Instant Ejiao
Instant ejiao is donkey-hide gelatin, the traditional Chinese tonic material ejiao, processed into a rapidly dissolving powder or granule so that it can be reconstituted in hot water without the prolonged simmering the solid glue block requires.
Ejiao itself is a collagen hydrolysate prepared from the hide of the donkey, Equus asinus, and consists almost entirely of protein: a mixture of partially degraded collagen chains and peptides rich in glycine, proline and hydroxyproline, together with a small mineral and moisture fraction. Hydroxyproline content is the routine identity and quality marker, and species authentication by peptide mass spectrometry or DNA testing is used to guard against substitution with bovine or porcine hide gelatin. The instant form differs from the classical block only in physical state, not in composition, although it is often blended with sugars, walnut, black sesame, goji or jujube in finished consumer products.
The powder is amber to dark brown, glassy and brittle in appearance, with a faint characteristic odour. It is freely soluble in hot water, giving a viscous, slightly sweet solution that sets to a soft gel on cooling if the concentration is high enough. Being a hydrolysed protein it is strongly hygroscopic, caking readily in humid air, so it is packed in moisture barrier sachets or laminated pouches with desiccant.
We source bulk Instant Ejiao from top China manufacturers for our partners. The manufacturer is in Shandong. A smaller requirement can ship in a combined container with other ingredients.
Please send the grade you need, the volume and your destination port, and we will come back with a solution and a price.
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- Function
- Nutraceutical
Specifications
| Item | Specification |
|---|---|
| Appearance | Amber to dark brown free-flowing granule or powder |
| Odour and taste | Characteristic, slightly sweet, no putrid or burnt note |
| Identification | Donkey origin confirmed by peptide mass spectrometry or DNA testing |
| Protein, dry basis | Not less than 60.0 percent |
| Hydroxyproline | Not less than 6.0 percent |
| Dissolution time in water at 80 degrees Celsius | Not more than 60 seconds |
| Loss on drying | Not more than 8.0 percent |
| Total ash | Not more than 5.0 percent |
| Particle size | Not less than 90 percent through 20 mesh |
| Heavy metals | Not more than 10 mg/kg |
| Lead | Not more than 1.0 mg/kg |
| Arsenic | Not more than 0.5 mg/kg |
| Chromium | Not more than 2.0 mg/kg |
| Total plate count | Not more than 10,000 cfu/g |
| Yeast and mould | Not more than 100 cfu/g |
| E. coli | Negative in 1 g |
| Salmonella | Negative in 25 g |
Common Markets Grades
Trade separates the raw material from the instant form. Ejiao itself is graded by hide origin and by processing house, with pure donkey-hide material at a substantial premium over blends. For the instant product the specification points are protein content, usually declared at 60 percent or higher for a pure instant powder, dissolution time in water at 80 degrees Celsius, and particle size, with granular grades at 20 to 60 mesh preferred for sachet filling because fine powder tends to lump on wetting.
Beyond pure powder, the common commercial forms are an instant granule carrying sugar or maltodextrin as a dissolution aid, and a compounded ejiao cake or block sold in ready-to-eat slices with sesame, walnut and rice wine. These compounded goods are specified on ejiao content rather than on protein assay. A separate ejiao peptide grade exists, further hydrolysed with protease to a low molecular weight fraction that dissolves in cold water and is used in beverages.
Applications
- Single-serve sachets reconstituted in hot water as a daily tonic drink
- Ready-to-eat ejiao cake and slice products blended with walnut, black sesame and goji
- Women's health supplements positioned on blood nourishment in the traditional tonic category
- Solid beverage powders combined with red date, longan and brown sugar
- Ejiao peptide beverages and shots, using the low molecular weight cold-soluble grade
- Gummies and soft sweets, where the gelatin fraction also provides part of the gel structure
- Nutrition bars and energy blocks in the tonic snack segment
- Collagen and skin support formulations sold alongside marine or bovine collagen peptides
- Herbal paste and syrup preparations, dissolved into a honey or syrup base
China Manufacturers of Instant Ejiao
Top Instant Ejiao manufacturers in China.
Company names and logos are the property of the manufacturers themselves. They are listed here because our own directory records them as producing this ingredient. A listing is not an endorsement by them, and we do not represent them or speak on their behalf.
Regulatory Status
In the United States donkey-hide gelatin has no GRAS affirmation and no food additive regulation, and reaches the market as a botanical or animal-derived dietary ingredient under the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act, with the marketer responsible for identity and safety substantiation. Because the material is an animal hide derivative, imports are additionally subject to United States Department of Agriculture Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service requirements on animal products, and species substitution is treated as an economically motivated adulteration risk.
In the European Union ejiao has no history of significant food consumption before May 1997 and would require authorisation as a novel food under Regulation (EU) 2015/2283. Products of animal origin also require compliance with the animal by-products framework of Regulation (EC) No 1069/2009 and entry through an approved establishment, which in practice restricts the trade. Codex Alimentarius has no standard for donkey-hide gelatin and JECFA has not evaluated it. Buyers generally rely on supplier hydroxyproline assay, species identity testing and heavy metal screening in place of a pharmacopoeial monograph.
Manufacturing Process
Raw donkey hides are soaked, dehaired with lime or an enzymatic treatment, washed until neutral and cut. The prepared hide is extracted with water in a series of stages at rising temperature, typically between 60 and 95 degrees Celsius, which converts the insoluble collagen into soluble gelatin. The extract liquors are filtered, treated with diatomaceous earth or activated carbon to remove fat and colour, and concentrated under vacuum. In the classical route the concentrate is boiled down with rice wine, rock sugar and soybean oil, cast into moulds, cut and air dried over several weeks to give the glue block.
For the instant grade the concentrated gelatin liquor is taken on a different path. It is standardised to a target solids content, homogenised with any carrier such as maltodextrin, and spray dried in a tower with an inlet temperature around 170 to 190 degrees Celsius and an outlet near 85 degrees, giving a fine amorphous powder. Because that powder is hygroscopic and slow to wet, it is usually fluid-bed agglomerated with a fine water or steam spray to build porous granules that sink and dissolve, then dried, cooled and sieved. Finished granules are packed immediately into moisture barrier sachets. Where a peptide grade is wanted, the concentrated liquor is first digested with a food-grade protease, deactivated, filtered and decolourised before the same drying train.
