A coalition of dietary supplement trade bodies has issued a
statement urging industry members not to promote natural treatments
as a prevention or cure for the SARS virus.
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a statement
confirming that it has not issued a new advisory on methylmercury
consumption, despite recent media reports suggesting otherwise.
The FDA's Task Force on Consumer Health Information for Better
Nutrition has established a public docket to receive views and
comments on issues such as health claims, from interested
stakeholders.
Ultra Health Laboratories and Bionate International are warning
consumers not to purchase or consume a herbal product known as
Vinarol, because it contains an unlabeled prescription drug
ingredient, found in the drug Viagra.
Nature's Path Foods has called the recent DEA ruling on hemp foods,
which categorizes all cannabis-derived foods in the same way as
illegal drugs, a 'baffling' move.
Canada's department of health has introduced a nutrition labeling
'toolkit' to help dietitians and health professionals educate
consumers on the new nutrition labeling practice, to become
mandatory for large companies...
FDA speakers will discuss the proposed good manufacturing practices
with dietary supplement manufacturers at an industry forum prior to
SupplySide East.
The industry is facing increased pressure after last week's
coroner's report which found that an ephedra dietary supplement
contributed to the death of Baltimore Orioles' pitcher Steve
Bechler last month.
Vitamin maker Rexall Sundown is to pay up to $12 million to resolve
Federal Trade Commission charges regarding its marketing of the
dietary supplement 'Cellasene', a purported treatment for
cellulite.
A supplement company has questioned the FDA's recent proposals to
further regulate dietary supplements, suggesting that the agency
should concentrate on the pharmaceuticals industry rather than the
'relatively safe'...
Following a new review on the safety of ephedra, the FDA has
announced a series of actions which may tighten laws on the
marketing of herb in supplements. Industry bodies have confirmed
their support for the moves, which do not yet...
Health ingredients manufacturer Cognis Nutrition and Health has
announced that the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has
approved GRAS status for the company's Xangold brand natural lutein
esters products in a variety of...
Mexican company Pigmentos Vegetales del Centro (Piveg) was recently
granted a temporary stay of injunction - the initial phase of a
patent infringement suit initiated by lutein supplier Kemin Foods
and the Catholic University of America...
The ephedra industry is attempting to reassure consumers of the
safety of the herb, taken to aid weight-loss, after reports in the
national press last week linked ephedra supplements to the death of
baseball player Steve Bechler.
The US Food and Drug Administration is to expand use of the
phytosterol heart-health claim to a broader range of foods and
beverages. The move was triggered by requests from Cargill Health
& Food Technologies, the company said...
Dutch speciality chemicals company DSM continues on its steady path
to growth with the announcement today that operating profit for
2002 reached €383 million, a 14 per cent rise on 2001, thanks in
part to 6 per cent autonomous volume...
The media should 'do the right thing' and stop running ads that
contain obviously deceptive weight loss product claims, Federal
Trade Commission chairman Timothy J. Muris told the Cable Televison
Advertising Bureau in New...
The European Parliament yesterday voted with an overwhelming
majority for a permanent ban on the use of the food additive E425,
otherwise known as konjac, in jelly confectionery.
The NNFA has welcomed the FDA's confirmation last week to exclude
health food stores from mandatory registration under the food
safety provisions contained in last year's bioterrorism law.
AAC Consulting Group, the regulatory consulting subsidiary of
contract research organisation Kendle International, has signed an
agreement with two toxicologists to further expand its services to
the food and dietary supplement industries.
The Federal Trade Commission has charged Slim Down Solution,
Maderia Management, and several related companies and individuals
with using false claims in the marketing of its so-called
weight-loss product, 'Slim Down Solution.'
The Committee on the Framework for Evaluating the Safety of Dietary
Supplements is requesting information and comment on prototype
monographs for melatonin, chromium picolinate, glucosamine, and saw
palmetto as dietary supplement...
The new commissioner for the US Food and Drug Administration, Dr
Mark McClellan, this week indicated his support for reviewing
current rules on health claims on food labels.
An organisation supporting ephedra manufacturers yesterday released
a report containing more than 55 clinical studies backing the
herb's safety and weight loss benefits - the report found no
significant adverse effects were caused...
A US District Court in Texas has ordered Mark Nutritionals, maker
of Body Solutions Evening Weight Loss Formula, to stop making
certain claims about its product. The order is in response to a
complaint by the Federal Trade Commission...
The United States Pharmacopeia has set up a new advisory panel on
botanicals. The panel will advise USP's dietary supplements and
botanicals expert committee on historical background of botanicals,
identification, global regulatory...
It looks like the case for ephedra supplements could be on a
downhill slide towards a nationwide ban, as a federal court finds
Metabolife supplements responsible for strokes and cardiac injuries
in four people. The attorney investigating...
The Food and Drug Administration last week re-launched the thorny
debate on the use of trans fatty acids in food processing, and the
labeling thereof, when it reopened the comment period for a
proposed rule first published in the...
Supplement industry trade body the Council for Responsible
Nutrition has published guidelines on the use of sports nutrition
supplements for young athletes, dividing products available on the
market into three coloured categories,...
Food and biotechnology industries in the US breathed a collective
sigh of relief this week as the voters of Oregon voiced a
resounding 'no' to Measure 27, an initiative that would have
required labels on food containing...
Since Swedish scientists revealed earlier this year that the
potential carcinogen acrylamide could be present in high-heated,
starchy foods, scientific and government bodies the world over are
seeking to calm the consumer.
The UK's Advertising Standards Authority has upheld two complaints
against a leading British tea company for making misleading claims
about the health benefits of tea. The incident highlights the
problematic area of advertising...
Canada's Federal Court last week fined four leading vitamin
companies C$3.875 million (€2.5m) for their role in a price-fixing
conspiracy. Degussa, Lonza and Nepera and Reilly Industries of the
United States were all charged...
Lonza Ltd and Lonza Inc, both subsidiaries of Swiss chemicals
company Lonza Group, have filed a series of patent infringement
lawsuits against supplement companies Carnitech, Barrington,
Stauber and Axel Chemical in the US.
The US Food and Drug Administration said yesterday it had ordered
the seizure of hundreds of bottles of a dietary supplement that the
agency said falsely claimed to treat autism.
Cognis Nutrition and Health and Kemin Foods have finally reached an
agreement in court over the marketing and promotional issues for
lutein and lutein esters products.Specific terms of the agreement
are to remain confidential between...
The UK's Food Standards Agency is advising people not to eat
calabash chalk, a traditional remedy for morning sickness, because
samples tested have revealed high levels of lead. The Agency is
also taking immediate action to remove...
Results from a European Commission report on the use and labelling
of food irradiation finds that 42 per cent of certain dietary
supplements in the UK have been illegally treated with the
technology.
The Council for Responsible Nutrition last week sent a letter to
Senator Durbin and other legislators recommending several actions
be taken to protect the safety and reliability of
ephedra-containing dietary supplements.
US supplement manufacturer Weider Nutrition is the fourth company
to join the USP Dietary Supplement Verification Program. Weider
will initially submit its Schiff brand of Move Free joint care
products for the DSVP certification process.
The National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA), a US-based trade
body, is the latest industry organistion to issue a statement
following this week's Senate hearing on ephedra in Washington. The
group reacted to Senator Durbin's...
When scientists from Sweden reported earlier this year that several
ordinary foodstuffs could contain high levels of acrylamide - a
potentially cancer-causing chemical - governments, food
associations and food manufacturers drew a...
Newly formed agency 'down under', the Food Standards Australia New
Zealand (FSANZ), this week invited interested parties and
organisations to comment on a number of proposed changes to the
Food Standards Code, including...
US trade body the Council for Responsible Nutrition said this week
that its Omega-3 Working Group has ratified a voluntary monograph
intended to raise the bar for the quality of long chain Omega-3 EPA
and DHA products marketed in...
The Ephedra Education Council (EEC) has responded to yesterday's
news that as many as one third of the US population now suffers
from obesity with a statement promoting the safety and efficacy of
the dietary supplement ephedra.
The weight-loss services provider Weight Watchers International is
suing Florida-based supplement company USA Prescriptions for
placing unauthorised pop-up ads for diet drugs on the
WeightWatchers website.
Speaking at the annual CRN conference yesterday, president John
Cordaro called upon the dietary supplement industry to promote
growth "by restoring consumer confidence in using dietary
supplements."
