As 2016 draws to a close, we highlight the top seven most-read APAC food and nutrition trends stories, featuring exclusive market and consumer insights from Japan, South East Asia, India, Australia and China.
The Indian Direct Selling Association (IDSA) has welcomed new rules for supplements and nutraceuticals announced by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), saying it is a crucial step towards better regulation in the country
The Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has issued its long-awaited rules for functional foods and supplements – publishing a 79-page set of criteria on its website.
One-in-ten non-pregnant young women in Australia have an iron deficiency, which is also estimated to be highly prevalent in indigenous communities, researchers say.
A greater emphasis should be placed on enhancing the bioavailability of key nutrients in foods by focusing on synergies to help fight under nutrition, say researchers from the Indian Council of Medical Research.
A combination of low-frequency exercise and high-dose vitamin D supplementation could help reduce risk of falls in the elderly by more than 70%, a new trial suggests.
A novel combination of prebiotic galacto-oligosaccharides could significantly improve absorption of certain minerals, according to new research in rats.
A historical disease caused by a lack of vitamin C and associated with old-world sailors, it appears that scurvy is reappearing in Australia due to poor modern dietary habits.
Analysis of the top 20 claims of new health supplement launches in China between 2014-16 shows products targeting female and seniors are on the rise, with claims related to bone, cardiovascular and brain health increasing rapidly. But is this want consumers...
Minerals and dietary supplements are leading the nutrition industry’s charge in China, with vitamins lagging behind, according to a new report which suggests the total market will reach RMB124bn (USD$20bn) by the end of the year, up 12.2 % from 2015.
They say that grey hair is a symbol of wisdom. This is so true as many Australian seniors are now taking a more proactive approach to their own healthcare by doing independent research to stay healthy and active.
Hawaii supplement firm The Daily Wellness Company is preparing to launch its first products in China in early 2017 – and has signed a deal with TruTag technologies to authenticate its products.
Almost 9m Aussies (44.2% of the population) regularly take vitamins, minerals or supplements, with Nature’s Own being the most widely consumed brand, according to new research.
Two supplements have been banned from sale by the UAE Ministry of Health and Prevention after receiving advice from the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA)
Direct sales firm Arbonne is to officially launch in Taiwan this week, initially with a range of 10 nutrition products alongside its skincare offering.
Japanese nutraceutical firm AstaReal says its astaxanthin has been found to be simultaneously effective against both mental and physical fatigue in a new published study.
US supplement firm Mannatech is entering the China market via e-commerce - a clear change in tack for the Texas company, which usually focuses on multi-level marketing or direct selling.
Better protection of intellectual property and a period of market exclusivity for innovative products would help improve research and development in Australia, claims trade body Complementary Medicines Australia.
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission is investigating alleged suspicious trading in the run-up to the announcement of a takeover at Australian supplement firm Vitaco.
China has provided one of the few positive notes in Mead Johnson’s quarterly results, with bosses hailing “substantial progress” in the country, despite conceding that global growth would be slower than planned.
Australian nutraceutical firm BioCeuticals has picked up two awards, one for a new health portal, and another for its health and lifestyle brand IsoWhey.
New research from Macau suggests that omega-3 polyunsaturated fatty acids could improve the function of the glymphatic system, which facilitates the clearance of waste from the brain.
Net profits at Australian vitamin and supplement supplier Blackmores fell by 46.6% in the first quarter, with daigou sales – items bought by Chinese entrepreneurs in Australia to ship back to China – plummeting.
China may have opened up its economy even more in the last several years but it's not as if the floodgates are wide apart. Much of this "openness" is actually born out of necessity rather than a love of equity. It's foreign trade policies...
Twelve edible herbs from Assam, India, are “alluring candidates” for nutraceutical and functional food developments, according to study which highlights their antioxidant capacity.
By Natasha Flynn, business development manager, HealthDirection
With more than 30,000 businesses generating sales of over A$4bn (US$3.1bn), the Australian complementary medicines industry has created a highly competitive landscape.
GNC could become the latest vitamin and supplement firm to have Chinese owners, with The Wall Street Journal reporting that the company has met with several interested parties.
Singapore’s Health Sciences Authority (HSA) says two so-called natural supplements have been found to contain “undeclared potent ingredients, including prescription only medicines”.
In the first instalment of NutraIngredients–Asia's Business Monitor, we keep tabs on the latest developments at the region’s leading nutrition and supplement firms, featuring Blackmores, Swisse Wellness and Ausnutria.
Australian researchers have developed a world-first optical sensor that can detect vitamin B12 in diluted human blood – something they believe is a first step towards a low-cost and portable, vitamin B12 deficiency test.
Omega-3 trade body GOED is entering a partnership with the US-China Health Products Association (US-CHPA) to better serve its member companies in the Chinese market.
It was has a huge challenge for Nils Hoem, Aker Biomarine’s chief scientists, to understand the specifics of nutraceuticals when he first arrived at the Norwegian krill oil manufacturer in 2008 after a career in pharmaceuticals.
As global krill oil major Aker Biomarine awaits regulatory approval for its new Superba 2 product line in China, increased consumer demand for omega-3s is bringing increasingly more local suppliers to the market.
Encapsulating omega-3 supplements with sage polyphenols and gum arabic could be a more healthy and economically viable option than techniques currently used, while also opening up the possibility of boosting protein intake, research from India suggests.
The sports nutrition potential of New Zealand blackcurrants, the superfood status of Canadian maple syrup and the functional benefits of Canadian barley – these were three of the high-profile pitches at the HI Japan tradeshow from international organisations seeking...
According to one supplier, the common way to measure protein quality unfairly disparages collagen, a protein source that is ubiquitous both in the market and in the bodies of mammals.
South Korean fish oil manufacturer Chemport has obtained Friend of the Sea (FOS) certification for its Omega 3 products originating from European and Peruvian anchovies.
Taiwan botanical manufacturer and supplier Aquavan is targeting international expansion after establishing an ingredients offshoot to complement its finished products offering.
Interpol has teamed up with the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) to fight the trade in doping products like steroids, hormones and banned performance-enhancing protein peptides that are being purchased usually online by both elite and amateur sportspeople.
Indian companies Vitalic Health and Athena Life Sciences have signed a joint venture to launch nutraceuticals and dietary supplements under the brand name 'Truuth'.