Nutraceuticals urged under CDSCO oversight; NGO cites 2024 panel on quality and pricing

Right to Life submitted a representation to Union Health Minister JP Nadda urging that nutraceuticals, including fortified foods and health supplements, be brought under drug regulators by implementing the 2024 committee's recommendations. The NGO argued that the current framework classifies nutraceuticals as food under FSSAI, diluting manufacturing standards and oversight. It contended that nutraceuticals are frequently prescribed by doctors across specialties as adjunct therapies and dispensed through pharmacies like prescription drugs, increasing risk of substandard or mislabelled products due to the lack of mandatory pre-market batch testing, pharmacopoeial standards, or strict labelling. The representation also highlighted unregulated pricing, noting that nutraceuticals are outside NPPA price controls since reclassification under FSSAI, with price hikes described as 200–300% or more in some cases. It cited the representation posted on X handle @RighttoLife_Org and called for CDSCO oversight, WHO-GMP compliance for manufacturers, and reinstatement of NPPA price controls.

The 2024 inter-ministerial committee recommended that nutraceuticals making disease risk reduction claims be regulated under the CDSCO rather than the FSSAI, and called for stricter Good Manufacturing Practice requirements. It also suggested limiting FSSAI's jurisdiction to nutritional and general health claims that do not pertain to specific diseases.