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Food supplements; advertisement for sale in Germany

If you wish to place food supplements on the market in Germany, you must notify the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL).

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Responsible for you

Bundesamt für Verbraucherschutz und Lebensmittelsicherheit

Street address

Bundesallee 51
38116 Braunschweig

Postal address

Postfach 1564

38005 Braunschweig

Website

www.bvl.bund.de

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Procedure details

Food supplements must meet certain legal requirements. This applies not only to the manufacture or declaration, but also when you make the product available for sale or use.

In the following cases, send a notification to the Federal Office of Consumer Protection and Food Safety (BVL):

First notification:
You must notify the BVL at the latest when you distribute the product on the German market for the first time or offer it for use or sale. You must submit a separate notification for each product.

Notification of change:
For example, inform the BVL if the already notified product

  • has a changed recipe,
  • you change the consumption recommendations or
  • your company has a new address.

Secondary notification: You must also send a notification if the product

  • is already registered in another EU Member State and
  • you wish to place the product on the market in Germany for the first time.

The BVL will forward your information to the competent authorities in the federal states and to the Federal Ministry of Food and Agriculture. The competent authorities of the federal states monitor compliance with the legal requirements. As a company, you are responsible for implementing these requirements.
The BVL does not assess the marketability of the products, i.e. the extent to which they comply with food law regulations.
The BVL cannot therefore confirm whether your product complies with food law regulations as part of the notification.
No authorization or approval is granted following the submission of the notification of a food supplement.

  • You are planning to launch food supplements on the German market.

  • Required document/s
    • Sample of the label in German to be used for the product
    • If there are several pack sizes or flavors, please submit all corresponding product labels.
    • Authorization if you are notifying the product on behalf of the responsible food business operator
    • If you have already notified your product in another EU Member State, the following documents are optional:
      • Confirmation of the first notification as a copy
      • German or English translation of the confirmation, if applicable

You can submit the notification online via the federal portal:

  • Call up the online form on the federal portal verwaltung.bund.de. This will guide you step by step through the necessary information.
  • Complete the form, upload the required documents and submit the notification online.
  • You will receive a confirmation of receipt.

There are no costs.

You must make the notification at the latest when you make the product available for sale or use in Germany.

Duration: 0.5 hours

Note for further information on the processing time:
Processing is completed when the notification form is sent or the confirmation of receipt is received.

The confirmation of receipt of the notification does not constitute a certificate as to whether the product is marketable. The marketability of the product (e.g. labeling) is not checked in the notification.
A notification does not replace the individual obligation to comply with food law regulations.

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Status: 03.11.2024
Editorially responsible for prodecure description: Bundesministerium für Ernährung, Landwirtschaft und Heimat
Source: Federal Portal
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