The French food safety agency (ANSES) has called for input into the safety of red yeast rice – commonly used in food supplements with EFSA-backed cholesterol management health claims – after it was made aware of 25 adverse events.
The European group that represents manufacturers of milk products aimed at 1-3 year olds has welcomed last week’s European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) opinion, even though it essentially rejected toddler milks in favour of more regular foodstuffs.
The UK’s Chief Medical Officer says a scheme that offers free vitamins A, C and D to under-5s in low-income familes, should be extended all children to boost their health and avoid illness and disease.
An NGO report alleging widespread conflicts of interests within the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) takes ‘a different approach’ to defining potential conflicts – but is an interesting contribution to the science and society debate, EFSA has said.
Fortified milks aimed at 1-3 year olds are no better nutritionally than regular foods, the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has concluded in a long-awaited opinion.
Australia and New Zealand have jointly issued a warning against pre-workout sports supplement OxyElite Pro following its links to an outbreak of acute non-viral hepatitis in Hawaii that killed one person and affected 29.
In the wake of some Western countries like Britain capping sales of traditional medicine imports from China, the country is now ramping up efforts to standardise production in the segment.
British, Danish and Spanish authorities have warned people not to consume OxyElite Pro, following a similar US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) warning issued to manufacturer USPLabs after a Hawaiian outbreak of hepatitis linked to the pre-workout supplement.
The EU recently approved a health claim for fructose – but the EFSA opinion also included a health warning. So could the positive health claim lead to negative health outcomes?
As a growing body of evidence indicates that iron and iodine play a crucial role in the cognitive development of children, though the presence of multiple other influencers, along with differences in need at various life stages present challenges when...
The stop-and-go, uncoordinated approach of EU-level and national regulators to bans on nutritional supplements including DMAA, dexaprine and synephrine, should be a cause for concern among policy makers and industry alike, warns Luca Bucchini, PhD.
New Nordic dietary recommendations focus on whole diet quality, rather than individual nutrients, with some key changes that could make a difference to how foods qualify for healthy choice logos.
Acute non-viral hepatitis is tragic, whether it’s potentially linked to a product labeled as a dietary supplement or not. It is also tragic when critics of supplements use it as a stick to beat the entire industry with, despite there being many unanswered...
The European Commission has passed a law meaning generic descriptors for food and beverage products which could be construed as health claims will only be allowed if they have been in use for more than 20 years.
A 3-year review of Nordic nutrient intakes has recommended daily vitamin D inputs increase from 7.5 microgram to 10 mcg per day for people between 2 and 75 years of age. For over-75s, it set a level of 20 mcg.
Leatherhead Food Research (LFR) is working on a project to support food and drink processors seeking to make cognitive performance claims for their products.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) has rejected accusations that it is secretive about the studies it assesses to determine the safety of foods, as claimed by a coalition of NGOs in an open letter.
DSM Nutritional Products has applied for an EU novel foods extension for a micro-algae-derived DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) omega-3 form to be used in infant formula products.
The European Parliament has vetoed a health claim linking carbohydrate consumption to normal brain function after objections that it could promote sugar consumption.
Illegal chemical DNP (2,4-Dinitrophenol) - commonly used as a fat burner - has been blamed for the death of an 18-year-old British man, making him the youngest British victim.
The Brazilian company Biorigin has announced plans to develop its position in the European beta-glucan market after winning EU novel foods approval; meanwhile the EU health claim scramble continues.
Fat burning food supplements containing a combination of caffeine and synephrine are dangerous, according to Finnish authorities which have called for their removal from shelves.
This time last year, the Southeast Asian nations of Asean set out to create the single largest regulatory framework for dietary supplements in the world. We spoke to Dato' Dr Rajen M, who has been advising on Malaysia's position, to give us...
On a day when its headquarters in Copenhagen announced a significant overhaul of a number of its core businesses, Chr Hansen’s vice-president of health and nutrition sales highlighted the regulatory difficulties companies face when doing business in Asia.
Australia’s Federal Department of Health has released a new discussion paper aimed at the regulation and availability of caffeinated energy drinks in Australia and New Zealand.
The UK Food Standards Agency (FSA) is pushing hard to end an illicit trade in the industrial chemical DNP (2,4-Dinitrophenol) which is being used as a fat burning, weight loss aid and has been linked to at least two deaths.
The UK medicines regulator has reinstated fat burning supplement, Dexaprine, after learning the Californian manufacturer had developed a special formulation for the UK market with medicinal ingredients removed.
The European sports nutrition sector has backed Dutch and UK bans of a fat burning product called Dexaprine, and welcomed actions against “cowboy operators”.
The UK has issued yet another contamination warning against Traditional Chinese Medicines (TCMs) claiming to treat conditions like menstrual pain and hair loss – leaving the local industry exasperated at the seemingly endless litany of cases.
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.
Cholesterol-busting plant sterol and stanol products – worth about €2.5bn globally – will have to carry warning labels in the European Union from next February.
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has proposed new standards for infant nutrition, substitute foods, fortified atta (flour) and ingredients as part of a wide overhaul of its standards.
The European Food Safety Authority’s (EFSA) recent backing of folate’s (vitamin B9) ability to reduce the risk of spinal birth defects is a good thing for infant health and the vitamin industry – but is it actually a prohibited disease claim in disguise?...
‘Absolutely insane’ that Red Bull can trademark the word ‘Red’: brewery
Redwell Brewing says Red Bull’s UK trademark for the word ‘Red’ is ‘absolutely insane’ after the Austrian energy drinks giant sent the craft brewer a stern letter warning of trademark infringement.
An Australian specialist has expressed serious concerns about efforts being made by industry bodies to increase the mandated gluten threshold for Australasia’s gluten–free (GF) standard.
A polymer used in as pill coating and approved in pharma applications has been found to be safe in food supplements by the EU’s central science agency after a request from the European Commission.
The UK advertising watchdog has issued guidance to companies making weight loss claims telling them to anally follow the EU nutrition and health claims regulation (NHCR) or face prosecution.
China has issued fines totalling RMB 669m ($110m, €82m) to six companies, including Mead Johnson Nutrition, Danone Dumex, and Fonterra, following an investigation into price fixing and suspected anti-monopoly law violations by infant formula manufacturers...
With Fonterra’s contamination crisis unlikely to die down soon, the fall-out in China is likely to have more of a lingering impact on New Zealand’s continuing trade with the country than it will on Fonterra, say industry experts.
A French firm has won a rare EFSA approval for an artichoke extract-based herbal formulation the EU’s central science agency has confirmed can reduce cholesterol.
The EU’s chief science agency has turned down a hangover health claim for a prickly pear extract before even evaluating the science behind it because it said the claim was too vague.
The World Health Organization (WHO) has reiterated its position that follow-on milks are unnecessary for 6-24 month old infants and said they are nutritionally dubious.
