For a long time, there has been ambiguity regarding whether capsule forms are allowed for common food. The industry generally holds the view that capsules are commonly seen in health and pharmaceutical products, yet not suitable for common food. Consequently, few capsule-type common food products have been imported into China through general trade. It is anticipated that more of these products will enter the Chinese market following this notice.

On October 7, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) issued an announcement (No. 8 of 2023) on the approval of 15 “Three New Foods”, including four new food raw materials, six new food additives, and five food-related products.

As of the end of June 2023, the National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) has issued two announcements (No. 1 of 2023, No. 3 of 2023), with a total of 42 products approved, covering 17 new food-related products (including those for expanded use).

On August 1, National Health Commission of the People’s Republic of China (NHC) issued an announcement (No. 5 of 2023) for “Three New Foods” with eight products approved, namely two new food raw materials, three new food additives, and three food-related products.

As of June 30, 2023, four novel foods have been approved by European Union (EU) in the second quarter of 2023. These are Cellobiose; 6’-Sialyllactose sodium salt produced by derivative strains of E. coli BL21(DE3); Iron milk caseinate, and Aqueous ethanolic extract of Labisia pumila

On April 26, 2023, we held a webinar on Pre-packaged Food Label Compliance Requirements and Food Advertising Risk Prevention and Control. During the webinars, many questions have been raised. Following are the Q&As.

In recent years, due to the lack of awareness or understanding of Chinese food label regulations by food production and management enterprises (including import enterprises), non-standard product labels, non-compliant claims and false advertising and other irregularities often happened. Besides, in view of the increasing attention of the State Administration for Market Regulation (SAMR) to the regulation of false advertising of food, how to grasp the scale of advertising has also become a challenge faced by enterprises. Food production and management enterprises urgently need to learn the regulatory requirements of food labeling, but also to understand the publicity key points of food advertising in order to effectively avoid regulatory risks. Based on this background, CIRS holds this webinar to explain the key points of pre-packaged food labeling and grasp the scale of food advertising through case studies. In addition, CIRS will also introduce the revision progress of the of GB 7718, GB 28050 and other label regulations, so as to help enterprises better grasp the direction of future label regulations.

Some interesting novel food have been approved by European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in the first quarter of 2023, including two varieties of insects. These include: 1. Vitamin D2 mushroom powder; 2. Acheta domesticus (house cricket) partially defatted powder; 3. Pea and rice protein fermented by Lentinula edodes (Shiitake mushroom) mycelia; 4. Lacto-N-tetraose produced by derivative strains of E. coli BL21(DE3); 5. Frozen, paste, dried and powder forms of Alphitobius diaperinus larvae; 6. 3’-Sialyllactose sodium salt produced by derivative strains of E. coli BL21(DE3); 7. Dried nuts of Canarium ovatum Engl.; 8. Bovine milk osteopontin; and 9. Roasted and popped kernels from the seeds of Euryale ferox Salisb.

What do you know about the acceptance and approval status of new food-related products (including those approved for expanded uses) in China between 2018 and 2022? In this article, our food experts will provide you with more detailed information about the registration status of food-related products. According to the statistics, 227 products have been accepted between 2018 and 2022, with 58 in 2018, 48 in 2019, 39 in 2020, 58 in 2021 and 24 in 2022.

Since the 1990s, the aging of China’s population has accelerated. According to the data of the seventh national population census, the proportion of Chinese aged 65 and over has reached 13.5%, which is higher than the global average of 9.3%. The aging population has promoted the development of the “silver economy” and expanded the consumption of the products and services aimed at older consumers. This article lays out the new opportunities and challenges for the "geriatric food industry".