The expert warned Russians about the growing number of fake dietary supplements on marketplaces

Online trade in dietary supplements (BAA) is experiencing a real boom, but at the same time the number of counterfeits is growing, warned Konstantin Khokhlov, head of business at Coral Club in Russia and the Republic of Belarus. He described the signs of counterfeit dietary supplements on marketplaces to Russians in a conversation with Lenta.ru.

Khokhlov said that during the inspection, Roskachestvo examined over 100 thousand cards of goods with dietary supplements on the largest marketplaces and identified widespread cases of violation of the law. Rospotrebnadzor went further and blocked 28 thousand retail outlets caught in the illegal sale of dietary supplements. However, as the expert noted, even these measures do not stop the growth of the market: over the past three quarters, sales of dietary supplements on the six largest marketplaces increased by 1.5 times, and the number of sellers by 5-6 times.

To avoid buying counterfeit dietary supplements on marketplaces, Khokhlov advised to carefully check the product. He called the main sign of a fake the absence of the “Honest Sign” marking. Also, according to the specialist, it is worth paying attention to visual defects: uneven fonts, crookedly pasted labels, packaging that does not match official photos, lack of tamper-evident protection, incomplete information in Russian and too low a price. You should also be wary if the brand name is erased on the product card.

“The only way to guarantee the authenticity and safety of dietary supplements is to purchase them from official partners, in pharmacies or directly on the manufacturer’s website. It is these channels that are responsible for the quality and origin of the goods,” Khokhlov emphasized.