•Obtaining optimum oxidative stability of products is closely correlated with the uniform distribution of the anti- oxidant, which is very often achieved by the application of carriers. The most frequently used carriers of extracts are edible oils and 1,2-propylene glycol (Kostrzewa & Owc- zarczyk, 1996). Extracts adsorbed on loose carriers, e.g. maltodextrin, are also very popular and such preparations in the form of powder are easy to use. However, other solid carriers are being investigated to introduce rosemary extracts to food products.
•Connective tissue proteins, especially collagen, have spe- cific functional properties, which may be important for application as carriers of various substances to facilitate uniform distribution of the substances, as well as increase their stability. Moreover, collagen rarely causes allergic reactions and is well tolerated by humans. Because of these properties, collagen is commonly used in medicine and pharmacology as a carrier of biologically active substances e.g. vitamins, minerals and drugs (Friess, 1998). However, this protein is used only to a limited extent as a carrier for food additives. Collagen preparations are produced from readily available and cheap raw material. Low production cost and functional properties of collagen result in a continuing interest in these preparations on the part of the food industry, including those running meat processing plants. Thus, collagen preparations applied to improve attributes of the processed meat could at the same time be carriers of substances to be introduced in these products.