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Maker of fish-scale celebrity collagen drink loses £3.6m tax fight after claiming £50 tonic counts as food

From the Newshound archive · first published 22 September 2026 · last updated 23 September 2026.

Judge Anne Redston, who ruled that Gold Collagen Pure's pleasant taste alone does not make it a food, found Minerva Research Labs had been wrongly charging zero-rate VAT since 2018.
Judge Anne Redston, who ruled that Gold Collagen Pure's pleasant taste alone does not make it a food, found Minerva Research Labs had been wrongly charging zero-rate VAT since 2018.

Tony Sanguinetti, 59, founder of Minerva Research Labs, has been defeated in a £3.6million VAT tribunal dispute after contending that his company's collagen drinks — made from sardine scales and cow hides — qualify as food and should therefore be zero-rated rather than taxed as a medicine. Judge Anne Redston concluded that the products, which carry endorsements from Charlotte Hawkins, Dame Denise Lewis and Yasmin Le Bon, are not presented to consumers as a meal or snack. The tribunal held that the fact they 'taste nice doesn't mean that purchasers are buying them as a food.' Minerva had sought to reclaim £3.6m from HMRC covering VAT paid since 2018.

Gold Collagen Pure, manufactured partly from sardine scale waste and cow hides, is the UK's top-selling collagen drink, with annual turnover of around £16million.

Sanguinetti established Minerva in 2009 after becoming 'obsessed with finding a way to reverse the signs of ageing', growing it into a celebrity-endorsed beauty empire.

HMRC turned down the refund claim, and when Minerva appealed to the First-tier Tribunal, the tribunal sided with the taxman's original assessment.

MoreThe TimesTycoon loses £3.6m tax case over fish scale anti-ageing tonic - The TimesDaily MailMaker of celeb-endorsed anti-ageing tonic loses £3.6m tax bill disputeThe IndependentCompany loses £3.6m tax fight over ‘anti-ageing’ drink as judge rules it is not food
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