Nutraceuticals may get cheaper as panel looks to regulate prices

The Centre is considering bringing nutraceuticals, usually sold without prescriptions, under price control to make them affordable for the consumer. A panel formed to address regulatory challenges with regard to nutraceuticals is looking at ways to regulate their prices, people in the know told ET. At present nutraceuticals come under the ambit of Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) and there are no such price regulations.

“Nutraceuticals are generally sold as over the counter (OTC) products. It has been seen that pharma companies are marketing them at high prices,” said an official aware of the line of thought in the government. “For example, in the case of vitamins, the companies are using active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) for manufacturing a medicine. They then mix it with another ingredient to make it into a nutraceutical and sell it at exorbitant prices,” he added.

At present, there are no rules and regulations to regulate the prices of nutraceuticals. “But this is going to get changed,” another person said. Senior officials from the ministry of health and family welfare, department of pharmaceuticals are (DoP), ministry of food processing industries, FSSAI, the Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI), director general of the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) and the director general of health services are actively discussing the issue and will soon come out with measures to regulate the prices.

“The idea is to control the increasing prices. The industry is surviving as there are no pricing regulations. They are not prescription drugs, which makes it easier for them to advertise and price the products as much as they like,” the same person said.

According to industry data, the nutraceutical market in India is estimated to reach $18 billion by the end of 2025 as compared to $4 billion in 2020.

A high level committee was formed earlier this year to review the guidelines related to these products and suggest a new framework. Nutraceuticals normally include health supplements such as probiotics, health drinks, vitamins and minerals.

Nutraceutical products, as of now, are governed by the Food Safety and Standards (Health Supplements, Nutraceuticals, Food for Special Dietary Use, Food for Special Medical Purpose, and Prebiotic and Probiotic Food) Regulations, 2022.

“It has been increasingly seen that due to interchangeable usage of the same nutrient or ingredient at different doses for pharmaceutical and nutraceutical products, companies are taking the consumer for a ride by charging them exponentially,” the person said.