Bespoke amino acid supplement manufacturing

EAA blends, BCAAs and HMB in powders, sticks and capsules

Essential amino acid (EAA) blends, BCAAs, L-tyrosine, beta-alanine, HMB and other amino acids are what our Leicester facility develops and makes for premium wellness brands as a BCAA manufacturer and amino acid supplement manufacturer, in custom powders, stick packs, capsules, tablets, shots and combination formulas. We dose from the evidence: a full EAA profile with the 0.7 to 3 g of leucine per serving that the International Society of Sports Nutrition cites, 4 to 6 g of beta-alanine a day in split servings, and HMB at the studied intake of about 3 g a day. Every batch comes with a certificate of analysis that includes the amino acid assay.

• BCAAs. L-leucine, L-isoleucine and L-valine, most often in a 2:1:1 ratio, or leucine-rich at 4:1:1 or 8:1:1. Instantised grades carry a thin lecithin coat so the powder wets and disperses; we specify sunflower lecithin or declare soy, a major allergen in the UK, EU and US.
• Essential amino acids. All nine: histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine, phenylalanine, threonine, tryptophan and valine, in a profile we design around leucine.
• L-tyrosine. The body's building block for dopamine and noradrenaline, used in focus and pre-training formulas. It dissolves poorly in water, so it suits capsules, tablets and powders better than clear drinks.
• Beta-alanine. Standard and sustained-release grades for buffering formulas; the sustained-release grade reduces the tingle.
• HMB. Calcium HMB and the acid form, HMB-FA. In a crossover study of 16 young adults given 1 g, calcium HMB showed higher bioavailability than the acid form (Ribeiro and colleagues, 2024).
• Other amino acids. L-glutamine, L-arginine, L-citrulline, glycine, taurine and L-theanine, the tea amino acid, for hydration, pump, recovery and calm formulas.

Grade means purity, form and documentation. We work with food and pharmaceutical grades and set identity, assay, L-form purity, heavy metal and microbiology limits in our specification. For every amino acid we document the source: the production route, the raw material it starts from, GMO status and allergens. That file supports vegan positioning, and vegan, halal and kosher certification are arranged for your product. Your formula is yours.

Leucine needs its partners, and BCAAs need taste masking

Dose: build to the evidence

Leucine signals muscle protein synthesis, and the International Society of Sports Nutrition advises 20 to 40 g of protein per serving with 0.7 to 3 g of leucine (Jäger and colleagues, 2017). But leucine needs partners: muscle cannot build protein faster unless all essential amino acids are available in abundance (Wolfe, 2017). So we design EAA products with a full profile at the leucine levels the ISSN cites, and position BCAA-only formulas on taste, routine and hydration rather than muscle. For beta-alanine, 4 to 6 g a day for a month raises muscle carnosine, the buffer behind its effect (Trexler and colleagues, 2015). For HMB, the ISSN's position stand puts the studied intake at about 3 g a day, split into three servings (Wilson and colleagues, 2013).

Absorption and timing

Free-form amino acids need no digestion, which suits small servings around training and customers who eat less, such as people using GLP-1 medicines. A joint advisory from four US medical and nutrition societies lists muscle preservation through resistance training among the nutrition priorities for people using these medicines (Mozaffarian and colleagues, 2025). Beta-alanine's tingle, the only reported side effect, falls with divided doses of about 1.6 g or a sustained-release grade (Trexler and colleagues, 2015), so we split the daily amount across servings. In the HMB crossover study above, calcium HMB taken in water showed faster absorption (Ribeiro and colleagues, 2024), which suits powders and stick packs.

Taste, solubility and stability

BCAAs taste bitter and resist wetting, and leucine and tyrosine dissolve poorly. BCAA drinks therefore start from instantised grades, with acids, sweeteners and flavours that cover the bitterness, built by our flavour and taste masking team from the first bench sample. Dry amino acids are stable; the risk is the blend around them. Amino groups react with reducing sugars in warm, moist storage through the Maillard reaction, which browns the powder and costs assay, so we use non-reducing sweeteners and keep water activity low. Acids and some salts attract water and cake, so we blend under humidity control and pack in moisture-barrier tubs and films.

Protein declarations

Nitrogen methods count added amino acids as protein: in the UK and EU, protein on the label is total nitrogen multiplied by 6.25. When amino acids go into a protein powder, we test the amino acid profile alongside nitrogen, so the protein declared is the protein delivered, the same check we run in our protein powder manufacturing.

Under 1 ml per capsule, so gram doses of amino acids need several

• Powders and drink mixes. EAA and BCAA powders in tubs, flavoured or unflavoured, often with sodium and potassium for training; see powder supplement manufacturing and electrolyte supplement manufacturing.
• Stick packs. One measured serving per stick, with the scoop's variation removed.
• Capsules and tablets. A size 00 capsule holds just under 1 ml of powder, so gram doses take several capsules, while tablets carry more per unit. Both suit L-tyrosine, HMB and leucine; capsules are GMP certified; see capsule and tablet manufacturing.
• Combination formulas. Leucine or EAAs added to protein, amino acids alongside creatine supplements, and beta-alanine, citrulline and tyrosine in pre-workout formulas.
• Shots and gummies. Shots carry taste-masked amino acids on our liquid lines, which are GMP certified. Gummies suit milligram actives such as L-theanine; gram doses of EAAs do not fit an honest serving.

We make every format above in our Leicester facility, which is ISO 9001, HACCP and GMP certified by BSI, and FDA registered. Amino acids sit within our sports nutrition manufacturing, and every sports formula is checked against WADA's Prohibited List at concept stage. R&D is a paid stage that can be included with an order of the right size.

Why L-tyrosine has no claim, and where amino acid labels get theirs

As of October 2026, amino acids can be used in food supplements in the UK and EU and in dietary supplements in the US, where the law names amino acids as dietary ingredients. What differs is what the label may say.

We write every claim from the GB nutrition and health claims register and the EU register word for word, and our regulation watch tracks every change that affects your product. We are an FDA registered food facility for dietary supplements.

Assay, source and GMO statements for buyers

For each market we prepare the label text, the claims wording and the document file buyers and marketplaces ask for: the product specification, certificates of analysis with the amino acid assay, source and GMO statements, the allergen statement, a stability summary and, where arranged, the Informed Sport certificate.

A documented production route, then six steps to release

Valine is produced by bio-fermentation with bacterial strains, mainly from beet or corn sugar, then extracted (European Commission, 2025), and we document the production route of every amino acid we use. Our process then runs in six steps.

1. Source. Supplier approval comes before any material is used, with a review every year, and we approve a second source for each critical amino acid, so one country or plant does not set your supply.
2. Specify. Identity, assay, L-form purity, particle size, bulk density, heavy metals and microbiology, set per product and market.
3. Receive and verify. Each lot arrives with a certificate of analysis and source documents, and its identity is confirmed by FTIR before it reaches production.
4. Weigh and blend. Materials are weighed against the batch record under our allergen management plan, which uses yellow colour coding. Vitamins and minerals that carry claims are pre-blended, and the main blend runs under humidity control with a uniformity check.
5. Fill or form. Tubs are filled by weight with a matched scoop, sticks are formed, filled and sealed in one process, capsules are filled to a set weight and tablets are compressed.
6. Label and release. Label verification on every batch is the critical control point in our HACCP plan, CCP-01. Three retained samples per batch are kept for shelf life plus one year, and nothing is dispatched without quality control sign-off.

Questions for a BCAA manufacturer, from L-form to Informed Sport

Every batch is tested by accredited partner laboratories (ISO/IEC 17025) as part of every order, then released by quality control against its specification.

• Amino acid content: each declared amino acid by HPLC, so an EAA label matches what is in the tub.
• Identity and form: FTIR against a reference, with optical rotation confirming the L-form.
• Protein products: the amino acid profile alongside nitrogen.
• Contaminants: lead, cadmium and mercury against the EU limits for food supplements of 3.0, 1.0 and 0.10 mg/kg, plus microbiology.
• Moisture and water activity: with dispersibility for instantised grades.
• Stability: accelerated and real-time studies of assay, colour, moisture and flavour set the shelf life on your label.
• Banned substances: Informed Sport certification is arranged for your product, with every batch screened before release.

Our full mock recall, forward and backward with mass balance, runs in seconds, and our testing and batch release page explains the full programme. Start your project with your amino acids, doses, format and markets, and we will build the formula and its labels around them.

References: Wolfe, branched-chain amino acids and muscle protein synthesis, Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition (2017); Jäger and colleagues, ISSN position stand on protein and exercise (2017); Trexler and colleagues, ISSN position stand on beta-alanine (2015); Wilson and colleagues, ISSN position stand on HMB (2013); Ribeiro and colleagues, HMB bioavailability, Amino Acids (2024); EFSA, opinion on BCAA health claims (2010); Commission Implementing Regulation (EU) 2025/1737 on valine (2025); Mozaffarian and colleagues, joint advisory on nutrition for GLP-1 therapy (2025).