BUTTER-C
Signature ingredients
Keratin hair mask OEM/ODM manufacturing
Keratin Hair Mask · OEM/ODM
Keratin is the tough protein of wool, feathers, horn and hoof; cut into small pieces with acid or enzymes it becomes hydrolyzed keratin (INCI Hydrolyzed Keratin), a familiar conditioning ingredient in hair masks and conditioners. What it does on hair depends on molecular weight: on hair tresses relaxed with alkali and soaked in a 1% solution for 24 hours, peptides of about 2,577 Da entered the cortex and peptides of about 75,440 Da stayed on the surface, and both reduced the number of fibers breaking early under tension, while 221 Da peptides entered the cortex but did not make the fiber stronger (Malinauskyte et al., 2021; one co-author worked for the company that supplied the test materials, which also co-funded the study). That is work on cut hair fibers; there is no controlled trial in users, so the evidence is limited: enough to choose a molecular weight on purpose and to say "helps leave hair smooth and easy to comb" once measured on the finished product, not enough to say "restores damaged hair". The keratin hair mask here is a rinse-off conditioning cream applied after shampooing on a cationic conditioner base. It is not the salon "keratin straightening" or "keratin restoration" service: that service straightens hair with solutions that often contain formaldehyde (also called formalin or methylene glycol) followed by blow-drying and flat-ironing, and formaldehyde and methylene glycol are listed in ASEAN Annex II (prohibited substances). Compared with the general hair mask page, this page focuses on the keratin itself: molecular weight on the COA, animal origin, the microbial risk that protein brings, and claim wording. Butter-C offers turnkey OEM/ODM manufacturing, from formula development and testing to labeled finished goods and the notification dossier.
Formula base
Hydrolyzed keratin on a cationic conditioner and fatty alcohol base
A keratin hair mask uses the same base as a conditioner, only richer. Most of the slip and easy combing at rinse-off comes from the cationic conditioner; hydrolyzed keratin is the named ingredient, chosen by the molecular weight on its COA.
Hydrolyzed keratin
INCI Hydrolyzed Keratin: a mix of peptides and amino acids from the keratin of sheep wool, cattle horn and hoof, goat hair and chicken feathers (CIR 2021); under one INCI, molecular weight can range from about 150 Da to tens of kDa. It comes as a powder or a 20–30% water solution, so the formula sheet states whether a percentage refers to the raw material or the active. This ingredient is not yet in Butter-C's in-stock ingredient data; source and COA are confirmed per order.
Cationic conditioners and fatty alcohol
Behentrimonium chloride (not yet in in-stock data, sourced per order) with cetrimonium chloride and cetearyl alcohol forms a lamellar gel network for a thick cream. At the usual conditioner pH (about 3.5–5.5) the hair surface is negatively charged, so the cationic head attaches and lowers combing force; according to the behentrimonium chloride article, conditioner makes hair easier to comb but does not fix hair structure.
Smoothing and conditioning agents
Amodimethicone (amino silicone) leaves hair soft and smooth with less frizz; panthenol and glycerin hold moisture. The silicone-free version uses shea butter and gives less shine. Silicone emulsions may contain cetrimonium chloride as an emulsifier, and that amount counts toward the Annex III limit.
Animal-free option
Hydrolyzed keratin is of animal origin, so it is not labeled "vegan". The plant option is hydrolyzed wheat protein (Annex III Ref 323: "Maximum molecular weight average of the peptides in hydrolysates: 3.5 kDa", marked "Except Indonesia") or hydrolyzed rice protein; the product is then not called a keratin mask.
Key technical points
Molecular weight, animal origin, microbiology, color and odor
The four items below belong to hydrolyzed keratin itself; they are settled when choosing the supplier and on trial samples, before filling.
Molecular weight chosen for the goal
Inferred from the 2021 tress study: a few hundred Da enters the cortex and swells the fiber without strengthening it, which is no basis for "thickens the hair shaft" (a claim Appendix 03-MP does not accept); about 2.5 kDa enters the cortex and reduces breakage; tens of kDa form a surface film and reduce breakage. A 24-hour soak is not a few minutes of real use. The COA must state average molecular weight and the test method; the "high molecular weight" material in the study had the INCI Aqua (and) Keratin (and) Hydrolyzed Keratin, so the label lists everything the supplier declares.
Animal origin and raw material documents
Annex II Ref 419 prohibits Category 1 and Category 2 animal material as defined by ASEAN; Category 3 includes feathers, and wool, hair, horns and hoof cuts from live animals with no signs of transmissible disease. Horn and hoof from slaughterhouses are not named explicitly in Category 3, so the supplier confirms the material category and regulatory staff review it. Human hair keratin (Hydrolyzed Hair Keratin): Butter-C reads it as falling under Annex II Ref 416, "Cells, tissues or products of human origin", and does not use it (an interpretation to be confirmed by regulatory staff). CIR requires the material to be free of detectable infectious pathogens such as BSE.
Protein raises microbial risk
Hydrolyzed protein is a nutrient for microorganisms; large salon jars opened many times, touched with wet hands and brushes carry more risk. A preservative efficacy (challenge) test under ISO 11930 is run on the final formula, with phenoxyethanol counted including the amount carried in the keratin solution. Keratin is added to the water phase during the cool-down stage (plant practice; no verified source gives a heat limit for the raw material).
Color, odor and light
Supplier specifications list color up to 8–11 Gardner and a typical protein odor, so at high levels the cream may darken and need fragrance masking. Hydrolyzed keratin solution exposed to UV breaks down into smaller peptides (Fan et al., 2025), so light-protective packaging is a reasonable choice (inference).
Three formulation directions
Three common keratin hair mask formats
Keratin mask for permed, colored and bleached hair
Medium-fraction keratin per the COA, close to the group that reduced breakage in the tress study; behentrimonium chloride and amodimethicone base. Assessed on bleached or chemically treated tresses, against the same base without keratin to see what the keratin adds.
Large-jar keratin steam mask for salons
A thick cream that spreads easily with a brush, does not run under a heated cap, with a preservative system strong enough for a jar opened many times. Warming under a heated cap or towel is how hair masks are used, not the blow-drying and flat-ironing of a straightening service; with a shampoo and conditioner containing hydrolyzed feather keratin, fiber moisture rose more with heat (Villa et al., 2013, a result of the whole formula, measured on hair fibers).
Plant protein mask
Hydrolyzed wheat protein with a COA showing average molecular weight ≤ 3.5 kDa (Ref 323), or hydrolyzed rice protein; the product name does not use the word keratin. Molecular weight is mandatory because people with wheat-dependent exercise-induced anaphylaxis after using a facial soap containing hydrolyzed wheat protein had IgE reacting to the fraction made of large polypeptide aggregates (Chinuki et al., 2013, 7 Japanese patients). Goods for Indonesia need regulatory confirmation of how the "Except Indonesia" line applies.
Packaging is planned with the formula
Wide-mouth large jars for salons, tubes or small jars for retail, single-use sachets for hotels; non-transparent materials preferred. Tubes and sachets keep wet hands away from the cream.
Parameters we monitor
What the R&D lab measures on every sample
Below is the set of parameters Butter-C tracks during formula development and scale-up. Specific limits are agreed with you on the approved sample and then written into the product's in-house specification.
- pH and viscosity
- Measured at 25°C; pH within the usual conditioner range, and the cream thick enough not to run under a heated cap.
- Cream stability
- Centrifugation, freeze–thaw cycling, storage at 40°C and 45°C; checked for water separation, change in thickness and darkening from protein.
- Cationic conditioner content
- Calculated as active per the COA: for rinse-off hair products, behentrimonium chloride alone or the sum of the three salts ≤ 5.0% (Annex III Ref 287), with cetrimonium + steartrimonium chloride ≤ 2.5% (Ref 286), including the amount in silicone emulsions.
- Keratin documents per lot
- COA stating average molecular weight and test method, source (species, tissue), animal material category under Ref 419, a BSE/TSE-free and no-human-origin statement, heavy metals, microbiology and any preservative carried in.
- Combing force and breakage
- Wet and dry combing force on bleached sample tresses; for a breakage claim, repeated combing or single-fiber tensile testing on the finished product, against the base without keratin.
- Assessment after drying
- Softness, shine and limpness of tresses after blow-drying, on fine and thick hair.
- Microbiology and challenge testing
- Tested at a GLP / ISO 17025-accredited laboratory; preservative efficacy (challenge) test under ISO 11930, especially for large salon jars.
- Color and odor
- Compared with the reference sample at room temperature, 40°C, with and without light, and after warm application.
- Packaging compatibility
- Seal of large jar lids, tube squeeze force with a thick cream, oil migration through the pack.
Claims
Claims at the level of smooth, soft hair fibers, kept apart from keratin straightening
The hair data for hydrolyzed keratin come from work on tresses and cut fibers; there is no controlled trial in people measuring breakage with a product containing hydrolyzed keratin. Appendix 03-MP (Circular 06/2011/TT-BYT) does not accept "restores hair cells/follicles", "thickens the hair shaft", "prevents hair loss" or "stimulates hair growth". Butter-C reviews the wording on the label and in marketing materials when preparing the notification dossier.
Helps leave hair smooth and easy to comb; soft, shiny hair (once assessed by sensory panel or combing force on the finished product)
Instead of: restores damaged hair from the root, regenerates keratin, restores hair structure.
Helps strengthen hair and limit breakage from combing, only when breakage is measured on the finished product
The raw material's tress data cannot replace this measurement. Instead of: prevents hair loss, thickens the hair shaft, stimulates hair growth. Heavy, prolonged or patchy hair loss needs a dermatologist.
Conditions hair left dry and frizzy by perming and coloring (when tested on chemically treated hair)
Instead of: "returns hair to its original structure", "revives burnt hair".
Contains hydrolyzed keratin
Used when keratin is present at a meaningful level in the formula. Instead of: "keratin straightening", "permanently straight", "salon-style keratin restoration", "vegan".
A conditioning mask, not a straightening product
Butter-C does not make heat straightening or smoothing products containing formaldehyde (Annex II Ref 1577, marked "Except Lao PDR"), paraformaldehyde (Ref 1578) or methylene glycol (Ref 1579). CIR (2013) concluded that formaldehyde and methylene glycol are unsafe in hair-smoothing products as used at the time; an OSHA hazard alert notes that many "keratin-based" smoothing products contain formaldehyde, some labeled "formaldehyde-free". Instead of: directions to blow-dry or flat-iron after applying; comparing the mask with a straightening service.
Label reminders
Apply to washed hair, leave for a few minutes, then rinse thoroughly; avoid the eyes and rinse with water at once if contact occurs; stop if itching, swelling or hives appear; people who have had hives from protein-containing hair products should ask a doctor before use; pregnant or breastfeeding women: not enough data, ask a doctor. The wheat protein version states wheat clearly. These are practical suggestions; the label text is agreed with you.
Manufacturing specifications
Available capabilities
- Texture
- Thick cream for salons, softer cream for retail; with or without silicone.
- Pack formats
- Large salon jars, tubes, small jars, single-use sachets. Volume agreed when choosing packaging.
- Minimum order quantity
- Agreed per order, depending on the keratin source, formula direction and pack chosen.
- Testing
- Tested at a GLP / ISO 17025-accredited laboratory, with a certificate of analysis delivered with every batch.
- Dossier
- Product Information File (PIF) and cosmetic product notification dossier prepared by Butter-C, with a hydrolyzed keratin COA stating molecular weight, source, animal material category and a BSE/TSE-free statement.
- Packaging
- Label design with apply-then-rinse directions and reminders about the eyes and protein allergy; printing and packing run in parallel with formula work.
Suggested product concept
Medium-fraction keratin hair mask for permed and colored hair
A concept to help you picture the product, not a ready-made product for sale. The actual formula is built around your brand's positioning and price range.
Medium-fraction hydrolyzed keratin
The named ingredient, chosen by molecular weight on the COA; the label says "contains hydrolyzed keratin".
Behentrimonium chloride and fatty alcohol
A thick cream with slip at rinse-off; levels calculated as active, within Ref 286 and 287.
Amodimethicone and panthenol
Smooth, easy-to-comb hair after drying; build-up tested on fine hair with repeated use.
200 ml tube and 500 ml salon jar
Non-transparent materials; the label gives apply-then-rinse directions and reminders about the eyes and protein allergy.
Customization options
Options you can specify
Within the same product type, each brand targets a different customer group. Tell us your requirements in the areas below and our pharmacists will build the matching formula.
Keratin molecular weight
Small, medium or large fraction, or a blend of two fractions, per the supplier's COA.
Keratin source
Sheep wool, feathers, horn and hoof according to the supplier's documents. Halal: the sources we read do not classify hydrolyzed keratin as halal; certification from the supplier or a certifying body is needed.
Animal-free version
Hydrolyzed wheat or rice protein, with the product named after the protein actually used.
Silicone
Amino silicone for smoothness, or silicone-free with shea butter.
Sales channel and packaging
Salons (large jars), retail (tubes, small jars), hotels (single-use sachets).
Product set
Shampoo, conditioner and mask in one keratin line, each step with its own claim based on the data for that format.
Further reading
Related knowledge
Hydrolyzed keratin in hair cosmetics
Molecular weight, hair-tress data, the CIR conclusion, allergy and how it differs from formaldehyde keratin straightening (in Vietnamese).
Hair mask OEM/ODM manufacturing
The general hair mask page: oils, proteins, salon and retail.
Conditioner OEM/ODM manufacturing
Daily conditioning between masks, on the same cationic conditioner base.
Behentrimonium chloride in cosmetics
The main cationic conditioner in hair masks, the Annex III Ref 287 limit and how to add up the salts (in Vietnamese).
Hair loss and hair breakage
What hair-shaft care can do and hair claims under Appendix 03-MP (in Vietnamese).
How we work
From idea to finished batch
Eight steps and three milestones signed off by both sides: approved sample, notification number, finished batch. Step-by-step details (in Vietnamese) →
Get started
Tell us about the product you plan to launch
Send us your product direction and expected volume. Our team will get back to you during business hours (Vietnam time, GMT+7).
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