Regulatory Review: Australia's CBD frustration, India's vitamin C reclassification and NZ government prosecution among our latest regulation news
'Misbranded nutraceuticals': Indian trade body chief calls for partnership, not punishment, from regulators
A trade association director is calling for better multi-sectoral cooperation in India, to minimise the need for authorities to clamp down on nutraceutical and supplement companies in India for labelling violations.
This comes after the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) issued a letter about what it terms 'misbranded nutraceuticals', instructing authorised officers to curb sales of such products.
According to the regulatory body, a spate of nutraceutical products and health supplements on the market that flout labelling regulations has been reported.
CBD frustration: Aussie supplement firms thwarted by rules while pharma advances march on
Pharmaceutical firms are making strides in the Australia's medical cannabis space, but supplement and nutraceutical firms will have to wait a long time before they can do the same, says an industry expert.
Complementary Medicines Australia (CMA) CEO Carl Gibson was speaking to NutraIngredients-Asia after biopharma firm MGC Pharmaceuticals announced a series of major business milestones, chief among them the Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) green-lighting its CBD-based Alzheimer's disease treatment for clinical trials.
The firm, known for its medical cannabis innovations, received formal approval from the Australian regulator to begin Phase IIb of its clinical trial on CogniCann, a pharmaceutical-grade, GMP-certified medicinal cannabis formulation.
Promisia CEO promises to 'fight' NZ government's prosecution while calling for improved legislation
New Zealand's Ministry of Health has announced it is prosecuting Promisia, the manufacturer of arthritis supplement Arthrem, in a move the firm's CEO claims is littered with "significant factual errors".
The ministry has alleged that Arthrem is being sold as an unlicensed medicine, and that some of Promisia's marketing activities run afoul of the Medicines Act 1981.
It is therefore filing nine charges against the company, which confirmed these details on Monday.
Reclassification of vitamin C as supplement, not drug, may see end of shortages in India
Vitamin C shortages in India may soon end, thanks to a proposal from the country's Department of Pharmaceuticals regarding the vitamin's official status.
Currently, it is classified as a medicine, meaning that vitamin C pills and tablets are subjected to price controls determined by the National Pharmaceutical Pricing Authority.
In recent times, however, this has caused shortages on the market, as suppliers have raised the prices of raw materials of active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs), while manufacturers are still required to sell their vitamin C products at controlled rates (as low as Rs5 for 10 pills).
CBD regulation: Global clampdown or treading a careful path to acceptance?
The interest in cannabidiol (CBD) use in food supplements, foods, and even as an ingredient in cosmetics has gained much momentum in the past five years, but what is the regulatory situation around the world?
Much interest stems from CBD oil's range of beneficial health effects, with reports of its role in pain relief and alleviating seizures.
Added to an absence of major side effects even at high doses, the food and nutrition industry is looking on in hope at the prospect of working with the oil in a new wave of innovative products.
