Scientists are calling for regulation of dietary supplements with botanicals after 30,000 new approvals in 2025

More than 30,000 new funds came onto the market in 2025 - without official review. Scientists sound the alarm and send a letter to two federal ministries.

When it comes to dietary supplements made from so-called botanicals, scientists are calling on politicians to regulate consumer protection. (Symbolic image) Photo: Vanessa Reiber/dpa

Munster. A group of scientists, doctors and consumer advocates are warning of significant quality and safety problems with dietary supplements containing so-called botanicals. In a letter to the Federal Ministries of Agriculture, Food and Economics, the experts call for an end to the unregulated situation with plant, algae, fungus or lichen-based ingredients in the interests of consumer protection.

There is an urgent need for action, the authors write in the letter, which is available to the German Press Agency. The health of consumers is at risk. Before entering the market, manufacturers simply have to enter their products in a register with the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety. However, the group criticizes that no official review is planned and points to toxicological risks.

This is handled differently in Switzerland or other EU countries such as France or Belgium, where there are much stricter documentation requirements for this type of dietary supplement.

The experts are demanding that manufacturers and sales companies provide correct and understandable information when registering. There should also be continuous testing of raw materials and finished products using recognized analytical methods. Misleading health claims need to be better checked.

30,000 registrations in 2025

One of the signatories is Andreas Hensel. He is President of the Society for Phytotherapy and heads the Institute for Pharmaceutical Biology and Phytochemistry at the University of Münster. Last year, over 30,000 dietary supplements were registered in Germany, said the professor of plant chemistry to the German Press Agency.

But because the legal requirements for this step are so inadequate, a dispute often follows between the state investigation offices, which point out problems, and the companies' lawyers, who point to their own other analysis methods. “You can always talk your way out of it,” says Hensel. Consumers would be exposed to risks that they cannot recognize.

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