Last week’s headlines included the potential for biotics to support astronaut health during extended space flight, the sunsetting of the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), and a proposal in Singapore to require mandatory notification for health supplements.
Biotics may hold key to long-term spaceflight
Research into the role of the microbiome during spaceflight could uncover essential innovations to support astronauts in their mission to Mars, as well as multiple under-served populations on earth.
Speaking at the IPC (19th International Scientific Conference on Probiotics, Prebiotics, Gut Microbiota and Health), in Krakow, last week (Jun. 22-24), Christian Roghi, co-founder at Microbiome Futures, told attendees how the five-month-young think tank is bringing together experts in microbiome health and space exploration to deliver innovations to support astronauts’ health.
“In just five months, the interest in the microbiome in space has been incredible. There is demand for the microbiome to be involved in space exploration positively, but we just don’t know how yet.”
He added: “We need the whole sector, especially the microbiome sector, to work together to answer some very difficult questions and change our mindset.”
With NASA aiming to send astronauts to Mars from as early as 2030, Roghi said a lot of work is still needed to find a solution to the biological challenge of a 24-month space mission.
“When you send someone to space, the biology breaks down and we need creative thinking and new solutions to be able to solve this issue.”
UNPA to sunset at the end of 2026 with Israelsen’s retirement
After 34 years of industry leadership and advocacy, the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA) will conclude operations at the end of 2026, following the retirement of its founder and president, Loren Israelsen.
The organization was founded in 1992 to help shape the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994 (DSHEA), the regulatory, quality, and public policy framework that enabled dietary supplements to evolve from a niche market into a global industry serving hundreds of millions of consumers worldwide.
“We’ve accomplished everything that we set out to do,” Israelsen told NutraIngredients. “When we began, we had one goal, and we were formed in a very different way than most associations. It was one mission. We were in a unique spot at that time that I’d worked for Senator Hatch. He was in a very powerful position in the Senate, chair of the HELP committee, very large industry in Utah. FDA was literally battering and bashing the industry to a point where we really felt [that without] federal legislation or something dramatic, we as an industry had nowhere to go.”
“The industry has evolved,” added Israelsen. “We have a number of very capable organizations, trade associations. We now have a range of category associations that are looking after the affairs of now billion dollar-plus categories. That did not exist previously. My sense is the industry is well managed. It’s in good hands, people who know what they’re doing.
“And if I’m ever going to take a look at the other side of the mountain, I think now’s a good time. And it doesn’t mean I disappear. It means that next year I will have a new freedom to think about and act on projects and ideas that I’ve been interested in for a very long time, but honestly have not had the time to work on those as I would like to.”
Singapore’s HSA proposes mandatory health supplements notification
Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority (HSA) is collecting public feedback on a proposal to require mandatory notification for health supplements before they are placed on the market.
Health supplements sold in Singapore are not subject to pre-market approval, and product notification introduced in 2022 remains voluntary. As of June 30, a total of 664 products have been voluntarily notified, according to HSA data.
This week, the authority announced a proposed regulatory framework for Complementary Health Products which would cover health supplements, traditional medicines, homeopathic medicines, medicated oils, balms, plasters and topical antiseptics.
Complementary Health Products are generally defined as self-care products containing ingredients with a long history of safe use, intended to support or enhance general health or relieve symptoms of minor, self-manageable conditions.
One of the more significant features of the newly proposed framework is the introduction of mandatory product listing for Complementary Health Products—requiring compliance with specific safety, quality, labeling, record-keeping, safety reporting and advertising requirements.
Products that have not undergone mandatory notification would not be allowed on the market, and information on all notified products would be published on HSA’s pubicly accessible website.
