After a four-year delay, FDA has at last released a final version of its guidance on liquid dietary supplements. The document doesn’t much change the line of thinking offered in the draft version but does offer more detail and clarification and in general...
Last week, Peter Zambetti, director of global business development at Capsugel and chairman of the International Alliance of Dietary Supplement Associations (IADSA), discussed the impact of GMPs on the global health & nutrition (H&N) sector. In...
Cases of sibutramine tainting in weight loss products are nothing new. But a recently-filed lawsuit drives home the real harm such products can cause, and the insidious way in which they have penetrated the marketplace.
GeneLink, Inc. and its former subsidiary, foru International Corp, have agreed to settle charges from the US Federal Trade Commission of deceptive advertising for claims that their personalized nutritional supplements treat diabetes, heart disease, arthritis,...
The FDA has written to three federal judges handling civil cases vs food manufacturers over natural claims to “respectfully decline” their request to come to an administrative determination of whether GMOs belong in ‘all-natural’ foods.
The US Federal Trade Commission’s new initiative to crack down on deceptive advertising practices for weight loss or management reinforces the importance of responsible marketing, say leading industry figures.
Dietary supplements, food additives, and skin creams are at the center of a new law enforcement initiative from the US Federal Trade Commission to stop national marketers that used deceptive advertising claims to peddle fad weight- loss products.
By John Shaw, Executive Director and CEO, Natural Products Association
At the Natural Products Association, we are constantly working toward our mission of ensuring consumers have access to healthy products that will improve their well-being and longevity, and that the dedicated and passionate individuals who make and sell...
From warning letters to GMO labeling and FSMA, it’s been a busy year for the regulatory people. In this special gallery we review the top regulatory, policy & enforcement headlines from 2013.
The Natural Products Foundation’s Truth in Advertising Program has hailed the responsiveness of companies to present accurate promotions and information about natural products to consumers.
Immune health is an increasingly large part of the thin edge of the wedge that is sports nutrition, one of the hottest categories in the dietary supplement sphere.
The patent granted on Perceptiv, a cognitive support dietary supplement, is a vindication of the approach taken on developing the product, one of the researchers says. From the start the team worked on a finished, fixed formulation and painstakingly...
Thorne Research, through its subsidiary Health Elements, has made a major stride into the arena of personalized nutrition with the acquisition of Wellness FX, a San-Francisco based company that helps customers manage their personal health data via a series...
Personalized nutrition is one of the ultimate goals of the dietary supplement and functional foods business. But the FDA warning letter received by high profile genomics testing firm 23andMe is casting a cloud of doubt over the trend. If FDA views the...
Nutraceutical technology development firm Health Enhancement Products Inc. has a new urine test in field trials that will measure a participant’s ‘wellness’ level via biomarkers for oxidative stress, the company announced recently.
Omega-3 ingredients sourced from algae has been a rising trend in the marketplace, and EPA-only products are an even newer development. Israel-based Qualitas Health is covering both bases with the launch of its new ingredient branded as Almega PL.
One year on and 'GMPs' and 'concern' continue to be used together by Dr Daniel Fabricant, Director of the Division of Dietary Supplement Programs at the agency, with many of the compliance issues still basic.
Sports supplement manufacturer USPLabs has recalled lots of its OxyElite Pro products after receiving a letter directing the action from FDA motivated by reports of liver illnesses in Hawaii associated with the product. FDA also it directed the recall...
Is saw palmetto what it seems? A recent study published in the open access journal Nutrients found big differences in the amount of fatty acids and phytosterols (the active ingredients) in the various forms that are on the market: liquids, powders and...
The botanicals industry was pleasantly surprised recently when the EU’s central science agency backed an isolated health claim for a bowel-benefitting herbal blend – but is EFSA really changing its botanicals approach before the EC has told it to?
The European Union botanicals sector has been in limbo since 2010 when 2078 botanical health claim applications were placed on hold as the European Commission bowed to pressure to reconsider the scientific criteria for their validation. With no end to...
In order to foster development of the medical foods the Council for Responsible Nutrition has called on the Food and Drug Administration to revise its recently updated guidance on the issue to eliminate what it calls “extra-statutory criteria” that it...
The Food and Drug Administration is seeking a permanent injunction against James G. Cole Inc., an Oregon-based dietary supplement manufacturer. As is usually the case with such injunctions, the action is the culmination of a long interaction between...
Chr Hansen CEO Cees de Jong today praised the Danish enzymes, cultures and colours specialist’s 2012-2013 performance that saw revenues grow 6% to €738m for the year, and highlighted 5% growth in sluggish EMEA as a major achievement.
Sales of brain health boosting food supplements like omega-3s, the B vitamin group, vitamin C and phosphatidylserine are driving the category toward sales of €2bn globally, even as brain-boosting foods and beverages have endured a flat period.
A dietary supplement claiming to provoke remarkable speech gains in children has removed these claims from its website and is in the process of removing it from product packaging after the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business...
With the global market for functional foods and beverages on track to reach $176.7 billion this year, this booming category now accounts for 5% of the overall food market and is driving growth for the food industry as a whole, according to Euromonitor.
A recent lawsuit filed in California points out some of the issues concerning who’s responsible for product claims as a product makes it way to market. Everyone in the chain shares some of the burden for making sure claims are backed up, experts say.
The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a warning letter to Oklahoma City-based Pure Energy Products, Inc. for products containing controversial compound DMAA.
Stefan Gafner, PhD, the new chief scientific officer of the American Botanical Council, said he chose to work with the organization because it aligned with his overall goals as a scientist in the herbal products industry.
Metagenics, a prominent California-based dietary supplement manufacturer that specializes in medical foods and supplements sold through the practitioner channel, has received a warning letter in which FDA says a number of its medical foods are mislabeled...
A new raft of warning letters for dietary supplement companies from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) shows that current Good Manufacturing Practice (cGMP) and label claims continue to cause problems for companies.
FDA may have opened a disease claims door for some dietary supplements when it shut another via its recently issued revised draft guidance on medical foods. That’s the contention of Peter Arhangelsky, an attorney with the law firm Emord & Associates.
Dutch authorities have issued a warning against a US fat burning food supplement called Dexaprine after 11 adverse reactions including hospitalisations and severe heart problems.
“The most common mistake by western fast moving consumer good (FMCG) companies who launch new food and beverage brands in emerging markets is that they jump straight in to a Pleasure position with their brands.”
A bill reintroduced by Senators Dick Durbin, D-Il and Richard Blumenthal, D-CT to require registration of all dietary supplements with FDA is a solution in search of a problem, according to trade organizations.
The United Natural Products Alliance based in Salt Lake City, UT, has added three new members, two network marketing companies and a finished product supplement manufacturer.
Coca-Cola says it is confident it will prevail in a deceptive marketing lawsuit filed more than four years ago alleging it misled consumers by promoting Vitaminwater as a healthy ‘nutrient-enhanced water beverage’.
Leading analytical lab Alkemists Laboratories has expanded its service offerings to include a new R&D division focusing on finished product method development, verification & validation.
The American Herbal Products Association has weighed in on draft proposals to amend California’s Proposition 65. Among the group’s recommendations are changes to the language of the warnings mandated under the law.
It has been almost a year since United States Department of Agriculture took down its ORAC database. Now that this official reference point is gone, does this measure of antioxidant potential still have relevance in the marketplace?
Social media is an extremely powerful brand-building tool that engages consumers, but it can also be a platform for strong business relationships and revenue generation, an expert says.
Leading CLA researchers and suppliers have slammed product claims that safflower oil is superior to CLA (conjugated linoleic acid) for reducing 'belly' fat, as the CLA community unites to set the record straight on the science.
US-based foods and supplements manufacturer, Now International, hasn’t sat on its hands since the EU’s new health claim laws kicked into play in 2008 – taking pre-emptive action to keep abreast of the new formulation and health claims landscape.
There wasn’t a dull moment in May for the US dietary supplements industry, with the highly anticipated AREDS2 data being published, FDA enforcement, and the GMO issue all making headlines.
The proliferation of proposed state GMO labeling laws is a means to an end, according to one longtime advocate. The ultimate goal is a federal law that would require GMO labeling across the US.
When communicating scientific information to a jury in a court proceeding, just remember your bedtime reading skills. Telling a good story well is the key, experts say.
Differing regulatory environments can play havoc with a company's research plans, say consultant Joerg Gruenwald, PhD. But recent, sometimes bitter, experience with the European Food Safety Authority has shed some light on how to negotiate this...
