Dietary supplements have become an integral part of health regimen for many people now. People take various kinds of supplements for addressing deficiencies in their system. The dietary supplement industry is seeing a clean label movement, which has caught up quite strongly. This is because consumers have become more aware and conscious now and are willing to know the various ingredients and their sources which are used in the making of the supplements. To put in plain and simple words, consumers are looking for transparency in the products that they consume.
With demands of natural and herbal products on the rise, people are more inclined to simple and pure things. Infact consumers do not wish that innumerable ingredients are used in the making of the supplements. What they want is that whatever ingredients are used should be put up in front of the customer in simple and plain, non-technical language. Also the ingredients should undergo minimal processing so that their qualities remain intact. People look for products which are free from pesticides, genetic modifications, antibiotics, hormones, artificial additives, sweeteners, preservatives etc. They prefer products which come from organic and natural sustainable sources.
The dietary supplement segment has been swept highly by the clean label movement. It has been seen that even if the cost of natural products are quite high, people are ready to pay premium for the same. Consumers often shift towards products which have specific qualities related to clean label like non-GMO (preferred by 70%), vegetarian (preferred by 70%) and lastly preservative-free (preferred by 73%). Various kinds of verification seals are also checked on various products to check their worthiness and authenticity.
Dosage Forms will have to meet Clean Label Criteria as well
If a supplement product is to be considered as Clean Label, the whole product has to fulfill this criteria and this includes the dosage delivery form as well. A sharp marketing edge can be obtained with a clean label delivery.
For satisfying the clean-label demand, Clean Label Alliance has been founded by five leading and top dietary supplement innovators. The Alliance has been launched in November. The main aim of this Alliance is helping manufacturers in delivering or transiting products for clean label supplements. The supplement innovators who are the co-founders of the alliance include Natoli, Bosch, Lonza, Biogrund and Ribus. The Alliance will look forward to solve problems and provide the required support to various supplement companies regarding manufacturing, ingredients, formulations and dosage forms.
Finding proper processes and solutions might bring in lots of challenges. Finding a clean label dosage form is not as easy as it seems. Each and every solution comes with unique resources and features so that the best results are obtained.
Challenges of Clean Label for capsules, tablets and soft gels – the traditional forms
It is a common thing that people who take supplements on regular basis usually try the widely tried and accepted dosage forms in the form of soft gels, tablets and capsules. Almost 36% people who take supplements prefer taking tablets; while 33% prefer taking soft gels. Capsules remain at the top position with 41% people trying to take the supplement in that form. All these three formats in which the supplements are available have been widely accepted by people for their cleanliness, convenience, simplicity and most importantly easy swallow-ability. Having a gel pack, a drink or a bar might not always be convenient. In its place, a tablet, capsule or a soft gel is much easier to consume. Just gulp it down with a glass of water and you are done.
Lots of efforts and advancements have gone for the capsules, tablets and soft gels for achieving clean labels. Companies manufacturing the supplements are working hard so that they can eliminate the usage of synthetic and animal-based recipients. Instead new alternatives are being sought for meeting consumer demands and provide them more natural offerings. The transition is sure to impact the whole manufacturing and packaging process of the dietary supplements.