EFSA in currently undertaking a scientific risk assessment of the nutritional substances for which companies have submitted a dossier. This exercise should be finalized before the end of 2009.

 

As risk managers, the European Commission in consultation with the Member States is due to set upper safe levels for vitamins and minerals in food supplements in the course of 2007-2008.
 

Articles 9 and 13 of the Directive provide for the European Commission, assisted by the Standing Committee on the Food Chain and Animal Health, to determine further technical requirements relating to the differences between the quantities of vitamins and minerals declared on the label of VMS, with those values established in the course of “official checks” of VMS on the market.
 
Several factors, such as the instability of vitamins and the difficulties associated with analysing products, make establishing nutrient content extremely difficult.

European federations have co-operated together on the issue and produced a paper for the European Commission that details the problems associated with this issue.