Why is it necessary to test dietary supplements?

Functional foods (health supplements) are products containing biologically active ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, amino acids, fatty acids, enzymes, probiotics, prebiotics, collagen, herbal extracts, and other functional compounds that may directly influence human health. As a result, testing plays a critical role in assessing product quality, safety, authenticity, and the conformity between actual product composition and declared claims.

For manufacturers, importers, and distributors, product testing serves as a fundamental basis for product registration and declaration, quality verification, regulatory compliance, risk management, and consumer confidence building.

For consumers, testing helps ensure that products contain the declared ingredients and active compounds at the stated levels, while verifying the absence of prohibited substances, contaminants, or other components that may pose potential health risks.

In accordance with Decree No. 15/2018/ND-CP, food business operators are responsible for ensuring the safety and compliance of their products. Product testing serves as an important basis for product self-declaration, product registration, quality monitoring, and regulatory compliance throughout the product lifecycle. Regular testing also supports manufacturers in maintaining product quality, verifying conformity with applicable standards and specifications, and meeting regulatory requirements.

Certain dietary supplements require testing

Based on product characteristics, formulation composition, and intended use, testing programmes for functional foods are typically designed around the following key parameter groups:

• Active ingredients
  Identification and quantification of the key active ingredients responsible for the product’s intended benefits, including vitamins, minerals, collagen, glucosamine, omega-3 fatty acids, curcumin, probiotics, enzymes, herbal actives, polyphenols, flavonoids, and other functional compounds.
• Food safety parameters
  Assessment of microbiological contamination, heavy metals, mycotoxins, pesticide residues, veterinary drug residues, residual solvents, environmental contaminants, and other food safety parameters in accordance with applicable regulatory requirements.
• Authenticity and anti-fraud verification
  Verification of raw material composition, botanical identification, probiotic strain authentication, confirmation of ingredient origin, and assessment of the consistency between actual product composition and declared product claims.
• Stability assessment
  Evaluation of changes in active ingredient levels, microbiological quality, and overall product quality over time to establish or verify product shelf life.

Examples of dietary supplements products requiring testing

• Collagen supplements and collagen-based products
• Ginseng and ginseng-derived products; cordyceps products; Spirulina algae products
• Probiotics and prebiotics
• Immune support products
• Beauty supplements and weight management products
• Liver support and detoxification products; omega-3 and fish oil supplements; glucosamine and joint health products
• Vitamin and mineral supplements; sports nutrition products; nutritional supplements for children and older adults.

Testing of dietary supplements

Eurofins Food and Feed Testing in Vietnam supports manufacturers, importers, brand owners, and distributors through comprehensive testing, inspection, audit, and certification solutions across the entire lifecycle of functional food and health supplement products, from raw materials to finished products.

Active ingredient analysis

Identification and quantification of beneficial active ingredients such as vitamins, minerals, collagen, vitamin E, omega-3, EPA, DHA, curcumin, probiotics, prebiotics, enzymes, and other bioactive compounds to verify label claims and declared content.

Nutritional analysis

Determination of energy, protein, carbohydrates, sugars, fat, dietary fiber, sodium, vitamins, minerals, and other nutritional parameters to support product labeling and regulatory submissions.

Microbiological testing

Analysis of total aerobic microbial count, Coliforms, E. coli, Salmonella spp., Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridium spp., yeasts, molds, and other microbiological parameters relevant to food safety.

Heavy metal and contaminant analysis

Determination of lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), arsenic (As), mercury (Hg), dioxins, PCBs, PAHs, melamine, ethylene oxide (EO), 2-chloroethanol, residual solvents, and other contaminants that may impact product safety and regulatory compliance.

Pesticide and veterinary drug residue analysis

Testing for pesticide residues in plant-based ingredients and veterinary drug residues in animal-derived ingredients to ensure product safety and compliance with market requirements.

Prohibited substance and undeclared active ingredient screening

Detection of prohibited pharmaceutical compounds or undeclared active ingredients, including sildenafil and its analogues, sibutramine, corticosteroids, analgesics, and other substances associated with adulteration or product fraud.

Food Safety Solutions

• Support for shelf-life and stability studies, product declaration and regulatory compliance, export market requirements,
• Nutrition labeling review,
• Customized technical and regulatory workshops, and implementation of GMP, HACCP, ISO 22000, FSSC 22000, BRCGS, and customer-specific food safety requirements.

Environmental compliance testing and consulting services supporting food manufacturing operations

• Environmental monitoring programs,
• Industrial hygiene sampling, 
• Water quality assessment,
• Production environment monitoring, sanitation verification,
• Environmental compliance testing, and consulting services supporting food manufacturing operations.