Key decision-makers from government and industry convened in Colombia to address changing dietary supplement regulation throughout the Latin American region and its impact on consumers. In Bogota on Sep. 4-5, the Scientific and Regulatory Trends on Dietary Supplements Workshop met, as it is recognized to be a reference for regulation in the Latin American region. The workshop was organized by the Latin American Responsible Nutrition Alliance (ALANUR) with the support of the International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations (IADSA) for regulators, policy and scientific experts to share ideas and identify new avenues in areas where legislation is not yet complete.

With changes in dietary supplement regulations being felt across more than 70 countries, the workshop highlighted regulatory trends across Latin America and worldwide. It addressed the challenges and opportunities emerging in Colombia’s regulatory environment, including issues such as substantiating health claims and ensuring the safety of bioactive substances in dietary supplements, as well as the food supplements policy and regulation, current regulatory practices and plans for further development of the regulation in the countries that were invited to participate at the workshop.

Meanwhile, industry leaders forecast that the work being done in Brazil to define selection criteria for foods and drinks that can bear claims relating to functional and health properties could have an impact across the region. EAS Strategic Advice Regulatory Affairs Manager Clara Giudice said the country’s significant influence on the region, as well as the impact of the working group set up by Brazil’s National Sanitary Surveillance Agency, ANVISA, will extend beyond Brazil’s borders with potentially great impact on countries in the region with regulation under development.

In response, EAS Strategic Advice is holding a workshop on Oct. 17 in Buenos Aires specifically targeted at helping companies understand nutrition and health claims regulations across Latin America. The workshop, titled “Nutrition and Health Claims: How to build a successful regulatory strategy for marketing food supplements and functional foods across Latin America,” is limited to a small group to ensure maximum participant value.