A study conducted in May 2025 on food supplements sold in the Republic of Ireland assessed the prevalence of health claims on labelling and their compliance with the European Regulation on nutrition and health claims No. 1924/2006, by comparing products sold online and in stores. It shows some regulatory non-compliances of the claims, illustrating that there are still difficulties in applying Regulation 1924/2006, 20 years after its publication.
Food supplements are concentrated forms of nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect, alone or in combination, intended to supplement the normal diet. They are marketed in dosed forms, such as capsules, tablets, powder sachets, liquid ampoules, bottles with droppers, etc. In the European Union, food supplements are subject to general food law and to European Directive 2002/46/EC concerning food supplements. Regarding the claims of nutritional and health effects to consumers, these claims must comply with Regulation (EC) 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims. Only authorized nutrition and health claims can be used, provided the conditions of use are respected. The authorization procedure involves scientific validation by EFSA of the demonstration of a causal relationship between the subject of the claim and the claimed effect. At the end of this assessment, EFSA publishes a positive or negative opinion. It is the Member States and the Commission that decide on the authorization of the claim. The claim authorized through regulation is listed in the European Union Register of nutrition and health claims. Any non-authorized claim is prohibited.
Regarding online sales, consumer information and nutritional and health claims must also comply with European regulations. Therefore, the consumer information available online must reflect what is sold in stores.
Study design:
The study was performed in two stores that agreed to participate in the study, a grocery store and a health food store, in Dublin, Ireland. In each selected category of dietary supplements, products were chosen consecutively on the shelf (from left to right/from top to bottom) in order to avoid subjective selection. Approximately 100 products per store were randomly collected. Pictures of the front, back, and side labelling were taken to extract the information for analysis.
The following data were recorded in an Excel file: type of marketing (in-store or online), product, type and format of food supplement, target population, presence or absence of health claims, number and type of claims present, nutrient to which the claim refers, category of health claim (for example, bone health, immune system…), and if the claim was authorized or not on the EU Register of Nutrition and Health claims, if the health claim was overall compliant, if the wording was compliant, if the wording was the exact text of the Authorization Regulation; if the mandatory information relating to the claim was present, if the mandatory information as a food supplement was present, and if the claim was on the front or back of pack.
Next, the same information was recorded on the online sites of these two stores.
Finally, what was found on the in-store labels was compared to the information presented on their online sales site.
Outcomes:
- In May 2025, information on 192 food supplements were collected, 180 of which were also available online.
- A total of 2,604 health claims were identified. A percentage of 89% of dietary supplements sold in stores carried at least one health claim, compared to 93% of dietary supplements sold online. The number of health claims on products sold in stores averaged 6, compared to 7 for products sold online.
- Only 80.7% of health claims on food supplements sold in stores were authorized, compared to 75.6% for food supplements sold online. The compliance of authorized claims was higher for food supplements sold in stores than for those sold online: 70.1% versus 62.1%.
- Regarding claims about botanicals, the majority of health claims are authorized: 48.6% of health claims for in-store products compared to 45.2% for online products. Their compliance was low: 17.4% in stores versus 19.1% online. Pending health claims for botanicals represented only 28.5% of health claims for in-store products and 33.1% for online products. Their compliance was low online at 8.9% compared to 16% in stores.
In conclusion, this study conducted in May 2025 on dietary supplements sold in Ireland shows that food supplements carry a high number of health claims: 6 to 7 for store products and online products, respectively. Nevertheless, this study highlights difficulties in applying the European Regulation on nutrition and health claims: the health claims used are not all authorized, and the authorized claims are not all compliant with the Regulation regarding conditions of use, mandatory statements, and wording.
If you want to know more on this study,
Orchidali can help you to communicate nutrition and health claims in compliance with the EU Regulation.
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The prevalence and regulatory compliance of health claims on food supplements sold in Ireland
A study conducted in May 2025 on food supplements sold in the Republic of Ireland assessed the prevalence of health claims on labelling and their compliance with the European Regulation on nutrition and health claims No. 1924/2006, by comparing products sold online and in stores. It shows some regulatory non-compliances of the claims, illustrating that there are still difficulties in applying Regulation 1924/2006, 20 years after its publication.
Food supplements are concentrated forms of nutrients or other substances with a nutritional or physiological effect, alone or in combination, intended to supplement the normal diet. They are marketed in dosed forms, such as capsules, tablets, powder sachets, liquid ampoules, bottles with droppers, etc. In the European Union, food supplements are subject to general food law and to European Directive 2002/46/EC concerning food supplements. Regarding the claims of nutritional and health effects to consumers, these claims must comply with Regulation (EC) 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims. Only authorized nutrition and health claims can be used, provided the conditions of use are respected. The authorization procedure involves scientific validation by EFSA of the demonstration of a causal relationship between the subject of the claim and the claimed effect. At the end of this assessment, EFSA publishes a positive or negative opinion. It is the Member States and the Commission that decide on the authorization of the claim. The claim authorized through regulation is listed in the European Union Register of nutrition and health claims. Any non-authorized claim is prohibited.
Regarding online sales, consumer information and nutritional and health claims must also comply with European regulations. Therefore, the consumer information available online must reflect what is sold in stores.
Study design:
The study was performed in two stores that agreed to participate in the study, a grocery store and a health food store, in Dublin, Ireland. In each selected category of dietary supplements, products were chosen consecutively on the shelf (from left to right/from top to bottom) in order to avoid subjective selection. Approximately 100 products per store were randomly collected. Pictures of the front, back, and side labelling were taken to extract the information for analysis.
The following data were recorded in an Excel file: type of marketing (in-store or online), product, type and format of food supplement, target population, presence or absence of health claims, number and type of claims present, nutrient to which the claim refers, category of health claim (for example, bone health, immune system…), and if the claim was authorized or not on the EU Register of Nutrition and Health claims, if the health claim was overall compliant, if the wording was compliant, if the wording was the exact text of the Authorization Regulation; if the mandatory information relating to the claim was present, if the mandatory information as a food supplement was present, and if the claim was on the front or back of pack.
Next, the same information was recorded on the online sites of these two stores.
Finally, what was found on the in-store labels was compared to the information presented on their online sales site.
Outcomes:
In conclusion, this study conducted in May 2025 on dietary supplements sold in Ireland shows that food supplements carry a high number of health claims: 6 to 7 for store products and online products, respectively. Nevertheless, this study highlights difficulties in applying the European Regulation on nutrition and health claims: the health claims used are not all authorized, and the authorized claims are not all compliant with the Regulation regarding conditions of use, mandatory statements, and wording.
If you want to know more on this study,
Orchidali can help you to communicate nutrition and health claims in compliance with the EU Regulation.
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