CRN discourages members from selling bulk powdered caffeine direct to consumers

“Our member companies are taking responsible steps to protect consumers by following the advice of FDA and asking industry to support the agency’s consumer advisory that warns of safety concerns for consumers purchasing powdered pure caffeine in bulk. Even though our member companies do not sell this ingredient directly to consumers, as industry leaders we are demonstrating support for FDA’s efforts and urging the entire industry to do the same,” ​said Steve Mister, president & CEO of CRN.

Bulk powdered caffeine has been for sale on a number of websites including bulksupplements.com​,where consumers can buy quantities of the ingredient from 100 grams up to a kilogram and more. The website includes a warning about the toxicity risk of using too much caffeine and recommends consumers restrict themselves to one-time dosages of 200 mg and use less than 600mg in a day. This warning doesn’t address the key safety concern with the ingredient in its bulk powdered form however. The key concern is that the ingredient is so highly purified that a 200 mg dose equates to about one sixteenth of a teaspoon, an amount that consumers are unlikely to be able to measure accurately with typical home kitchen equipment.

CRN has added a section to its caffeine guidelines specifically calling on its members not to market powdered pure caffeine to consumers. The addition clarifies that it is not intended to limit marketing or selling of powdered pure caffeine in bulk form as a business to business transaction.