A European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) external scientific report published on 3 July 2026 has identified nine substances in food supplements (excluding vitamins and minerals) that may pose emerging risks to consumers. The report, titled "The European Food Supplement Project - Identification of emerging risks associated with food supplements, other than vitamins and minerals," was produced by a consortium of experts led by Aymeric Dopter and aims to facilitate prioritisation of substances for potential regulation under Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006.
The project was divided into two work packages. The Vigilance work package collected alerts from European (nutri)vigilance systems, Toxinfo collections, and poison centre signals, identifying six ingredients as possible sources of emerging risks: Bifidobacterium, Coleus (Plectranthus barbatus), Guggul (Commiphora mukul), Toothed clubmoss (Huperzia serrata), Black radish (Raphanus sativus L.), and Ginseng (Panax ginseng). The Plant work package focused on plant-based substances predicted to be toxic according to the EFSA Compendium on Botanicals, pointing out three substances of concern widely distributed in marketed plant-containing supplements: furfural, emodin, and chrysophanol.
The report notes that future data are needed to refine exposure assessments for European consumers and characterise the associated risks. The findings could lead to regulatory action under Article 8 of Regulation (EC) No 1925/2006, which allows the European Commission to prohibit, restrict, or place a substance under Community scrutiny if a potential risk to human health is identified.
The report directly affects EU food supplement manufacturers and importers, who may face new compliance costs or market restrictions if the flagged substances are regulated. EU consumers could benefit from reduced exposure to potentially harmful substances, but may see reduced product choice. EU regulatory bodies, including the European Commission and national authorities, will need to assess the evidence and decide on next steps. The EFSA itself may require additional data collection and risk characterisation studies before any regulatory proposals are made.