In a recent post, Health Canada stated that the evidence of hepatotoxicity associated with turmeric- or curcuminoid-containing NHPs appears to be idiosyncratic, but the products could, in rare cases, lead to serious outcomes for liver health.
The agency noted it was updating its monographs accordingly.
“Health Canada expects license holders to update the risk information on product labels for all licensed turmeric- or curcuminoid-containing NHPs to: include information about the warning signs and symptoms of hepatotoxicity, including yellowing of the eyes or skin, dark urine, nausea, vomiting and stomach pain; advise consumers to stop using these products and consult a healthcare professional if symptoms occur; and advise consumers to consult a healthcare professional before use if they have a liver disorder or are taking medications,” the agency stated.
CHFA: Health Canada’s approach highlights ‘a serious and growing concern for Canada’s NHP sector’
In response, Sonia Parmar, vice president of regulatory affairs and government relations for the Canadian Health Food Association, told NutraIngredients that Health Canada’s turmeric safety posting underscores a deepening transparency problem.
“Health Canada’s recent posting of the Summary Safety Review on turmeric and curcuminoids, released in late 2025 but based on signals and case reports dating back years, highlights a serious and growing concern for Canada’s natural health product (NHP) sector,” she said. “At no point during this review, nor prior to its publication, did the department engage with affected stakeholders. Yet the posting introduces mandatory labeling requirements. Requirements applied unevenly to NHP, but not food manufacturers for products containing identical concentrations of turmeric.”
This signals a shift in Health Canada’s posture this year, Parmar added.
“Irrespective of actual risk level, any post-market concern may be written directly into law without industry consultation,” she noted.
“Not only does this contradict established Canadian legal and regulatory principles, but the department appears undeterred. It is always seeking expanded powers to incorporate more regulatory instruments into what has effectively become a no-man’s-land of unpredictable and uncalibrated risk responses.
Parmar noted that comparative regulators, such as Australia’s TGA (which characterized the same risk with turmeric as low to negligible), routinely consult on similar issues, and this ensures transparency, proportionality and shared understanding.
“Health Canada’s approach stands in stark contrast and diminishes trust in a system intended to protect consumers while supporting responsible innovation,” she said. “For CHFA, the issue is not disagreement over the need for safety evaluation; it is the lack of process and appropriate application of risk mitigation. When decisions with real operational consequences are made unilaterally and presented as final, the system fails the very stakeholders it relies upon.
“Health Canada must re-establish meaningful consultation before imposing changes that carry labeling, compliance, and economic impacts across an entire category. CHFA will continue to press for a regulatory approach that respects transparency, accountability and the realities of a sector relied upon by millions of Canadians.”
Market success, international concerns
Turmeric (Curcuma longa) boasts a long history of safe use as a culinary ingredient, and the botanical and the curcuminoids it contains (curcumin, demethoxycurcumin and bisdemethoxy curcumin) have been reported to have a range of health benefits, including brain, cardiovascular, joint and muscle health.
Data sources pegged the turmeric/curcumin NHP supplement market in Canada at around CAN$165 million (US$120 million) in 2021.
In comparison, U.S. sales of supplements with turmeric/ curcumin as the main ingredient were US$37.1 million in 2024 in the natural expanded channel (the number one selling herbal) plus US$141.8 million in the mainstream/ mass channel (number 4 on that list), according to the 2024 Herb Market Report published by the American Botanical Council (HerbalGram 144).
However, turmeric-based food supplements have been attracting negative attention in recent years with reports of potential liver damage. In 2022, the Italian Ministry of Health announced restrictions around the use of health claims for turmeric products and issued a new warning to be used on labels following reports of hepatitis cases.
Around the same time, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health & Safety advised against “the consumption of food supplements containing turmeric by people with bile duct disease” and that “there is a risk of curcumin interacting with certain medications such as anticoagulants, cancer drugs and immunosuppressants.”
In 2023, Australia’s Therapeutic Goods Administration (TGA) released a safety advisory to warn consumers and health professionals that medicines and herbal supplements containing Curcuma longa (turmeric) and/or curcumin may cause liver injury in rare cases.
