25.05.2015
1,800 companies are operating in this market, which, though growing rapidly, is hampered by the lack of consistency in European legislation. The issue was discussed today at IPACK-IMA at the Milan Trade Fair Centre (Fiera Milano).
Milan, 21 May 2015. With a €2.3-billion turnover in Italy (over €10 billion in Europe), which increased by 7.6% between April 2014 and March 2015, in excess of 170 million packets of special foods (dietary supplements, fortified foods, dietary products, probiotics and functional foods) are now being sold, while the number of companies operating in the industry has increased to 1,800. The headlong acceleration of the sector is being checked, however, by a mishmash of diverse European standards, definitions and rules that are hindering exports and the free circulation of the products.
"For example,” explained Teresa Minero, vice president of the Italian branch of the International Society for Pharmaceutical Engineering (ISPE), “ginseng is considered a food in some countries and a pharmaceutical product in others. This confusion causes commercial headaches for operators, as well as problems of perception for the final consumer."
The problem was addressed today at a conference sponsored by ISPE at IPACK-IMA, the world fair of process and packaging technologies that is taking place at the Milan Trade Fair Centre until 23 May. The debate focused on the diverse and evolving national laws relating to a broad array of products: omega-3, folic acid, caffeine, ginseng, probiotics, yeast, vitamins, minerals and so on.
Apart from the regulatory questions, the industry is also hard at work dealing with some other hot-button issues concerning quality, safety and efficacy, which have now come to the fore as consumers make increasingly frequent use of supplements. “It is strategically important for companies to monitor the entire chain of development, production and control: from the farming and extraction of vegetable substances to the formulation, production and distribution of the product,” Minero added. “Safety and sustainability depend also on the processing and packaging used, which is why this conference is taking place in the context of the IPACK-IMA fair, which is the most authoritative international showcase for these technologies."
Over the last fifteen years, the market value has doubled, and today 8 out of 10 Italians make use of dietary supplements, according to estimates from Eurisko/Federsalus. The top sellers are vitamins and minerals, followed by probiotics (milk enzymes, for example), and throat and cough treatments. A new growth area is in energy supplements and products to help weight loss and cholesterol control. These categories of products account for over 60% of the total turnover of the sector. Sold mainly in pharmacies, they are now regularly recommended by doctors to patients. One out of three specialist doctors and more than half of GPs advise their use.
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