Sustainability
CONTENTS
SUSTAINABILITY AND SOURCING: IT’S WHY WE’RE HERE
Bare Biology exists because our founder Mel couldn’t find a fish oil she trusted enough to give to her family. Sustainability, transparency and ethical sourcing have shaped everything we’ve done since, even our name.
Since day one, we have been sourcing our fish oil range from certified fisheries, holding ourselves to rigorous independent testing standards, and developing the UK’s first MSC Certified marine collagen. Since then, we’ve scrutinised every part of our supply chain, from fish oil and creatine to capsule coatings, pouches and ink. Hands up, we aren’t perfect, but we’re working on it.
For the designated readers in the family, we see you. We are you. This page contains everything we can tell you about where our ingredients come from, how our supplements are manufactured, and the standards we expect our suppliers to meet. It’s the stuff that won’t fit onto the packaging, but if you’re anything like us, it’s probably the stuff you care about the most.
OUR STANDARDS AKA THE SMALL PRINT, EXPANDED
We had to really earn the title "the fish oil people." Our fish oils aren’t just high-strength. They’re third-party tested by IFOS, which holds fisheries to account for their fishing practices. The same accountability applies to all the supplements we make. All our products are manufactured in accordance with relevant laws, regulations and GMP principles for dietary ingredients in Norway, the EU and the USA, as well as NSF GMP guidelines for dietary ingredients.
SUSTAINABLE FISH SUPPLY & MANUFACTURE
Our omega-3 supplements are made with oil from wild, sustainably caught fish. We only work with fish oil manufacturers that have been certified by Friends of the Sea and Marin Trust.
All of our fish-based products are manufactured in Norway and under a HACCP system, in an establishment approved by the Norwegian Food Safety Authorities and in compliance with the relevant parts of Norwegian and EU hygiene regulations for food: EC Regulation 852/2004 and EC Regulation 853/2004.
We source our marine collagen from the first MSC-certified manufacturer in the world, and we’re also MSC Certified.
These are the standards we live by, and we believe they’re the only way to produce the best supplements. We hope the day comes when they’re simply regarded as the minimum standard.
- Friend of the Sea certification requires fisheries to meet strict environmental and social standards, including:
- Non-overexploited target stock according to FAO, Regional Fishery Bodies and National Marine Authorities
- Fishery to generate a maximum of 8% discards (which means marine waste)
- No by-caught species included in the IUCN red list of endangered species
- No impact on the seabed
- Social accountability
- Compliance with legal requirements (incl. TACs, no IUU, no FOC, mesh size, min size, MPA, etc)
- Energy balance and yearly fuel efficiency improvement
Marin Trust is a non-governmental organisation that oversees fisheries. They’ve developed a Global Standard and Certification Programme for the Responsible Supply of Fishmeal and Fish Oil. It’s all about responsible sourcing, production and supply practices – from making sure marine ingredients are tracked through the supply chain all the way down to worker safety. We appreciate their ecosystem-based approach, which considers the broader impact on marine biodiversity. And the fact that they work with accredited, independent certification bodies that do audits and inspections to make sure they meet the Marin Trust standards.
All of our omega-3 supplements are IFOS Certified, which means they're independently tested for purity, freshness and safety. You can view the results for each batch on all of our product pages. Why is IFOS important when buying fish oil?
We’re one of the only MSC-certified marine collagens in the UK. (Our chain of custody code is MSC-C-65149 if you’d like to check). We chose our collagen supplier because they were the first MSC-certified collagen manufacturer in the world and are part of the Aqua Bio Profit project. This is an EU-funded project to help develop high-quality proteins from European aquaculture and fisheries. In short, it means our manufacturer only ever uses sustainable hydrolysed wild codfish skin discarded from the fillets (Gadus Morhua), which was once considered as waste and thrown away
SUSTAINABLE BOVINE COLLAGEN SUPPLY
We only use cattle raised on farms in Europe for our bovine collagen. Most of the time, that means grass-fed EU and Swiss cattle. Because it's made in Switzerland, the animal welfare standards are very high. EU regulations don't allow the use of antibiotics, antiparasitic treatments (Under Regulation (EC) No. 853/2004), hormones, or other medicated treatments on cattle (Under Regulations (EC) No. 470/2009, (EC) No. 37/2010, and (EU) 2019/1871).
Our supplier carries out annual testing on their collagen, and we independently third-party test every batch we buy for toxins, amino acids & bioavailability. Like all our products, you can read the results of each batch test on the product page (here's the latest)
THE REST OF OUR NUTRIENT RANGE
For ingredients made from plants, minerals and compounds, we’ve chosen suppliers and manufacturers known for rigorous quality standards and testing.
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Creatine
Our creatine, High Flyer, is made using Creavitalis®, a creatine monohydrate we source from Alzchem Trostberg GmbH in Germany, the same company behind Creapure®, which is widely used by professional athletes. We chose Creavitalis® because it is the form of creatine monohydrate most commonly selected by researchers in clinical studies for health applications. They're a bit like us when it comes to testing, too, with accredited laboratory testing as standard.
Creavitalis® is manufactured using synthetic raw materials and water as the only solvent. No materials of plant or animal origin are used during production. It also meets strict EU standards for contaminants, including heavy metals, and is not treated with ethylene oxide.
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Vitamin D
Most vitamin D3 supplements come from sheep’s wool. We use 100% non-GMO, algae-derived vitamin D (cholecalciferol), sourced in the UK. That means it’s suitable for vegans, too.
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Magnesium
One of our biggest head scratchers is magnesium.
Currently, the raw materials for Ready & Rested come from outside the EU: China (occasionally from India) for the magnesium bisglycinate and the Philippines for MCT oil powder. Right now, China and India are the only viable sources of high-strength magnesium bisglycinate.
We carry out our own independent testing to ensure consistent purity and dosage. You can view the results on our website, along with the COA (Certificate of Analysis) for aflatoxins, pesticides, and heavy metals. We’re not happy about the air miles either. But as soon as we can find another option, we’ll look into it.
What about our capsules?
Good question. Our gelatin capsules are manufactured in the UK by suppliers that meet rigorous food safety and quality standards. They’re licensed by the MHRA for the manufacture and testing of soft gelatin & herbal medicinal products, BRC (Global Standard for Food Safety) certified (grade AA+) and registered with the U.S. FDA and successfully inspected by the FDA for the manufacture of dietary supplements in accordance with 21CFR111.
Because many of our products contain certified marine ingredients, our capsule manufacturers also have to meet the traceability standards required by organisations including the Marine Stewardship Council (MSC), Friend of the Sea (FoS) and Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC).
OUR PACKAGING IS A PROCESS
All our cartons, jars, bottles, lids, and plastic tubs are 100% recyclable. The only exception is our High Flyer creatine pouch, which currently needs to be recycled with soft plastics at a supermarket collection point. Everything else can be recycled at home.
We’ve worked hard to reduce air or sea miles for our packaging components, and where we can, we source from Norway and the UK, but in some instances this can’t be avoided.
We also work with a warehouse that is as hot on minimal postal packaging as we are. We never use plastic, excessive padding, or unnecessarily large boxes (it’s SO annoying when companies do that).
ALL ABOUT OUR POUCHES
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(nearly all) 100% home compostable
Most of our pouch range is certified TÜV OK Compost HOME, one of the world's leading compostability standards. This means the materials have been independently tested and verified to break down in a well-managed home compost environment, without leaving behind microplastics.
They're made from paper sourced from renewable materials, a compostable barrier layer derived from wood pulp, plant-based compostable sealants, and compostable inks and adhesives.
The exceptions are our High Flyer creatine and sample pouches, which are recyclable but not compostable.
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Letterbox Friendly
With the exception of High Flyer, all our pouches fit through the door. Fewer missed deliveries means less back-and-forth in a van and less packaging waste for everyone. Nice.
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Resealable
You can use them to refill your glass jar, or use them on their own. They have a zipper, which means you can reseal them and keep everything fresh.
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Travel & Handbag Friendly
Our glass jars are heavier, bulkier and can break in your bag. Pouches are ideal for travel or keeping in your handbag.
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WHY IS HIGH FLYER DIFFERENT?
We originally wanted to use the same compostable pouch format for High Flyer to move away from tubs that aren’t always easy to recycle. The problem is that with creatine powder, any moisture ruins the product entirely. Whilst compostable pouches provide protection throughout their shelf life, they're more susceptible to barrier damage, tears and punctures than the material used for High Flyer.
As with all things, we’re always seeking the perfect solution, but we can’t compromise the product.
QUALITY AND SUSTAINABILITY ARE THE BACKBONE OF BARE BIOLOGY
We’re not perfect. But we’re getting closer to where we want to be.
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best seller
HIGH FLYER
£34.95 -
RISE & SHINE
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LIFE & SOUL
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SKINFUL
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READY & RESTED
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BEAM & BALANCE
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ACTION HEROES
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LIFE & SOUL
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FUNDAMENTAL
£29.95 -
MINDFUL
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BEAM & BALANCE
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VIM & VIGOUR
