Abstract: An improved method for manufacturing alkaline (e.g., zinc-manganese dioxide) electrochemical cells and a corresponding anode formulation are disclosed. In particular, zinc and a mixture of gelling agents are employed to better control the manufacturing conditions and to improve the overall performance of the resulting battery. The gelling agents are selected to have differences in resistivity, viscosity and polymerization/cross-linking. The zinc may be of any type, as is known in the art.