Welcoming the KHSA, Iadsa chairman Ric Hobby said its membership would open up new swathes of Asia in terms of market and regulations.
“KHSA has actively supported the industry in South Korea for more than 25 years and was instrumental in the creation of the Health Functional Food Regulation,” Hobby said.
“With Korea as a member, Iadsa looks forward to working more closely in the growing market of Korea and East Asia as these countries increasingly look at their regulation and policy as key reference points.”
Founded in 1998, Iadsa brings together the world’s health supplements groups and companies into one body to work with governments and scientists to develop regulatory and policy framework for supplements.
The association is running programmes across the world to support regulatory developments, including in Asean, China, India, Korea, Latin America and Russia.
According to Yang Joo Hawn, chairman of the KHSA, membership of Iadsa is an important step for the Korean industry group.
“Sharing the common values and goals of Iadsa, we look forward to becoming an active participant and contributing to promoting a sound global environment for health supplement worldwide.”
Established in 1988, KHSA has focused its programme on contributing towards improving health in Korea. The Korean health functional food market was estimated to be worth US$4.5bn in 2012.