The dietary supplements space is extremely complex. There are several major product categories – multivitamins, sports nutrition, and probiotics for example – with a majority of market value covered by about 100 ingredients. The lack of uniformity of product quality and, in some cases, adulteration of dietary supplements continues to be a concern for manufacturers, regulators and consumers alike.
The industry continues to look for ways to improve trust and confidence in dietary supplements, while minimizing overlapping and duplicative audits. For their part, consumers are looking for greater transparency with respect to dietary supplement ingredients, product label information, and claims. And regulators are seeking to protect public health and safety, maintain product integrity, and support informed decision making by both consumers and health care professionals, without stifling innovation and efficiency in the marketplace.
In ANSI’s experience, programs built on robust product and process standards with appropriate risk based conformity assessment procedures are key to building trust and confidence.
ANSI convened a Dietary Supplements Standardization Coordination Workshop to continue stakeholder dialogue on opportunities to work together to advance safety, quality, and trust in the dietary supplements supply chain, particularly through voluntary consensus standards and related conformity assessment programs. The event was a follow-up to initial stakeholder meeting on the topic held in December 2018. The program included presentations, activity updates, and discussion among stakeholders on avenues for cooperation. Representatives of manufacturers, retailers, government agencies, trade and professional associations, and consumer advocates, attended.
ANSI and the Global Retailer and Manufacturer Alliance (GRMA) convened a cross section of stakeholders to learn about industry-led efforts to advance safety, quality and trust throughout the dietary supplements supply chain. Over 60 participants heard updates from the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), the Dietary Supplements Quality Collaborative (DSQC) and Supplement Safety & Compliance Initiative (SSCI) on the current landscape. Attendees were then able to recommend priorities and potential next steps in addressing the standards and conformity assessment-related issues and challenges facing the dietary supplements industry – which resulted in the May 2019 event.
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