China Updates Raw Material Directory and Function Claims for Nutrient Supplements

On December 1^st, 2020, State Administration for Market Regulation ("SAMR"), National Health Commission ("NHC") and National Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine released the Health Food Raw Material Directory - Nutrient Supplement (2020) and Health Function Catalogue Allowed for Health Food Claims - Nutrient Supplement (2020). Both regulations will come into force on Mar. 1^st, 2021, replacing the Health Food Raw Materials Directory (1st Batch) and the Health Function Catalogue (1st batch) released in 2016.

Health Function Catalogue

Compared with the 2016 catalogue, two major changes in the 2020 health function catalogue are:

1. A new nutrient β-carotene

2. New interpretation on health functions

The interpretation on functions will work as function claims for corresponding nutrients. Health food labels are allowed to take one or more sentences from the interpretation as standard function claims. However, business operators should not delete, add, modify words in the standard function claims, or combine different sentences as one.

Part of the function interpretation (function claims) are as follows:

Raw Material Directory

On the basis of 2016 raw material directory, the 2020 raw material directory:

1. Updates reference standards for some raw materials (e.g. GB 1903.14 for calcium citrate instead of GB 17203);

2. Supplements compound sources for current nutrients; and

3. Adds the allowed compound sources for the new nutrient β-carotene.

Information of new materials added in the directory are as follows:

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