(Source: Alodokter)

Depok, Indonesia – The halal cosmetics industry continues to experience significant growth as Muslim consumers become increasingly aware of the importance of halal compliance, not only in the final product but also in every raw material component used. In this context, gelatin has become one of the most scrutinized ingredients due to questionable halal status. Despite its important functions in cosmetic formulations such as emulsifier, thickener, and collagen source, most gelatin on the market comes from pork or beef that does not always have clear slaughtering processes according to Sharia law. This poses a particular challenge, both for manufacturers who want to develop halal products consistently and for consumers who demand assurance of compliance with halal principles.

Chicken Skin as a More Reliable Source of Halal Gelatin

Amid these challenges, an innovative approach has emerged that utilizes chicken skin as an alternative source for halal gelatin. Chicken skin itself is abundant waste from the poultry industry and can potentially be utilized as a high-value-added raw material. Compared to cattle and pork, halal auditing of chicken is much easier to conduct because the slaughtering process is more standardized and has widely obtained halal certification. Additionally, the utilization of chicken skin also supports sustainability and efficiency efforts in the food and cosmetics industries. Unfortunately, the traditional extraction process of gelatin from chicken skin still requires a long time and often produces gelatin with suboptimal quality. Therefore, a more efficient and environmentally friendly technological approach is needed to extract high-quality gelatin.

Ohmic Heating: Fast and Environmentally Friendly Extraction Technology

An important breakthrough comes through the application of Ohmic Heating (OH) technology, a heating method that works by passing electrical current through a water-based medium containing raw materials, in this case chicken skin. This technology enables uniform heating from inside to outside the tissue, resulting in a much faster and more efficient extraction process. Research published in the Food Hydrocolloids journal in 2023 shows that Ohmic Heating can extract gelatin from chicken skin in only about one hour, far shorter compared to conventional methods that require up to eight hours or more.

Superior Quality of OH-Extracted Gelatin for Cosmetic Needs

Not only in terms of speed, extraction results obtained from OH technology show improvements in yield quantity, gel strength, and thermal stability—important factors in cosmetic formulations that require high durability and stability. Furthermore, gelatin extracted using OH demonstrates superior functional properties, such as better ability to bind water and oil, form emulsions, and create foam—all characteristics that are crucial in developing skincare and cosmetic products with soft and stable textures.

Its amino acid composition also undergoes changes, particularly an increase in imino acid content such as proline and hydroxyproline, which play a vital role in forming strong and elastic gel structures. This makes OH-extracted chicken gelatin not only halal and sustainable but also competitive in performance compared to other animal gelatins that have dominated the market.

Great Opportunities for Indonesia’s Halal Cosmetics Industry

For the halal cosmetics industry, the presence of gelatin from chicken skin using OH technology opens great opportunities to strengthen independence and integrity of the halal supply chain. By relying on local raw materials that are easily auditable for halal compliance, manufacturers can ensure higher transparency to consumers. Additionally, the energy and time efficiency offered by OH technology also contributes to reducing production costs, making halal products more competitive in terms of price and quality. Equally important, the utilization of chicken skin waste supports efforts to reduce poultry industry waste, in line with circular economy and sustainability principles.

Need for Purification Process for Commercial Use

Although promising, research results also show that gelatin produced through OH still requires further purification processes to ensure that the final product truly meets quality and safety standards, both in terms of microbiology, heavy metal content, and cleanliness aspects according to cosmetics industry regulations and halal certification. This stage is important so that gelatin can be widely accepted by the market, including by large manufacturers who have strict quality standards.

Conclusion: Local Innovation for the Future of Global Halal Cosmetics

Overall, the development of OH technology for gelatin extraction from chicken skin marks an important step toward a more independent, transparent, and sustainable halal cosmetics industry. With collaboration among researchers, manufacturers, and regulators, Indonesia has great potential to become a pioneer in providing high-quality halal raw materials based on local resources. In addition to meeting domestic needs, this innovation also opens export potential to global markets, particularly Muslim-majority countries that increasingly demand high halal standards.

Referensi

Ahmed, M. K., Al‑Kahtani, H. A., Jaswir, I., AbuTarboush, H. M., & Ismail, M. (2020). Extraction and characterization of gelatin from camel skin. Food Hydrocolloids, 105, 105–115. 

Gavahian, M., & Chu, Y. H. (2022). Application of ohmic heating for food processing: Fundamentals and recent advances. Trends in Food Science & Technology, 120, 1–14. 

Mohammadnezhad, A., & Farmani, J. (2022). Poultry skin gelatin as a halal alternative: Properties and applications. Food Hydrocolloids, 124, 107252. 

Tunç, S., & Koca, N. (2019). Enhanced extraction of bioactive compounds from plant materials by ohmic heating: A review. Journal of Food Engineering, 241, 104–115. 

Işık, Ç., Parlak, M. E., Kıraç Demirel, F. T., Odabaş, H. İ., Dağdelen, A. F., Yılmaz, M. T., Taylan, O., & Sarıcaoğlu, F. T. (2023). Gelatin extraction from chicken skins using ohmic heating: Effects on physicochemical, functional, rheological, thermal and microstructural properties. Food Hydrocolloids. Advance online publication.