Last week’s headlines included new guidance for influencers by EHPM, the launch of creatine chews by India’s MuscleBlaze as demand for the ingredient surges, and the Natural Products Association meeting with representatives of the Texas attorney general’s office to discuss the ongoing probe into protein powders.
EHPM launches influencer marketing guidelines
The European Federation of Associations of Health Product Manufacturers (EHPM) has unveiled new guidance for influencers and food business operators working in the supplement sector.
Launched at the trade association’s inaugural Food Supplement Summit in Brussels this week, the guidelines aim to support legal, responsible honest and transparent communication by both food business operators and influencers companies and influencers.
Saskia Geurts, director at NPN, the Dutch trade association for the food supplement industry, and chair of the EHPM Influencer Marketing Working Group, said the guidance comes at an important time.
“Influencer marketing is growing very rapidly and this poses a challenge for the industry and society,” she told delegates. “Consumers are vulnerable to misleading messages, and for our industry, this is really bad news because this can damage the image of our sector.
“We think guidance is needed specifically for food supplements because the products in our sector are related to health and are also subject to strict regulations, but influencers are not always familiar with these regulations. So, it’s time for self-regulation. We need to show that we are a responsible industry and we need to safeguard the responsible use of food supplements by consumers.”
MuscleBlaze launches creatine chews to capture lifestyle, cognitive users
Creatine has become the largest SKU for Indian sports nutrition firm MuscleBlaze in sales volume and the company is now hoping to capture a wider audience with a new dosage format and highlighting creatine’s cognitive benefits.
Speaking to NutraIngredients, Kaustuv Paliwal, senior vice president, said the company was hoping to capture a wider group of users beyond gym-goers through a more user-friendly format and by highlighting creatine’s cognitive health evidence.
“People are recognizing the importance of or are feeling the importance and effects of creatine on lifestyle and cognitive health. The chatter has started in India,” said Kaustuv. “These consumers may not be very comfortable with taking creatine in the powder format as compared to gym-goers, where powder creatine is the norm.”
Many consumers were exposed to creatine through social media and content creators such as neuroscientist-podcaster Andrew Huberman.
“It was largely in the last 1.5 years, especially after Andrew Huberman’s podcast on creatine, when he talked at length about creatine benefits for both muscular health and cognitive health, that’s when the chatter about creatine’s cognitive benefits first started,” said Kaustuv. “One thing Huberman should be given credit for is simplifying technical knowledge for the general public, while sticking to facts and not bringing in personal bias...This was how sales of creatine went through the roof.”
NPA engages Texas AG’s office amid ongoing protein powder probe
The Natural Products Association (NPA) met with representatives of the Texas attorney general’s office last week to discuss the state’s industry-wide investigation into protein powder manufacturers.
The organization said it will engage in ongoing conversations with the office to offer industry perspective on the issue and that representatives are receptive to talks. The NPA added that it is not clear whether the state has a litigative target.
Two weeks ago, Texas attorney general Ken Paxton announced in a statement that his office would be investigating manufacturers based on concerns of heavy metals, including lead and cadmium, found in popular protein powders. The investigation will determine whether manufacturers violated the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act and if “companies falsely marketed or misrepresented the safety and contents of their products and whether they failed to disclose known information about heavy metal contamination.”
On June 9, Daniel Fabricant, CEO and president of NPA, penned a letter to Paxton expressing a shared commitment to consumer safety but cautioned that the attorney general’s office cited third-party testing of products by the Clean Label Project that does not account for “robust safeguards our members implement throughout their manufacturing process, nor does it reflect the scientific consensus of the federal agencies that Congress has charged with regulating dietary supplements.”
