UAE calls 'health foods' to account

MEDICAL CLAIMS: Companies will be required to seek committee approval before marketing health foods, including nutritional supplements.

Health foods in the UAE will soon be regulated as the Ministry of Health addresses the issue of medical claims made by some products, it was reported Tuesday.

The Health Ministry and General Secretariat of Municipalities (GSM) are to form a joint committee to regulate health foods, including nutritional supplements and energy bars, an official told UAE daily Gulf News.

Under the new system businesses would be required to seek approval before marketing any health food products, in a bid to protect consumer rights and ensure product safety, said Khalid Mohammed Sharif, head of food control at Dubai Municipality.

"This includes power bars and energy bars. We have to test them for safety and see if their claims can be substantiated before they can be sold," he told the newspaper.

The committee would be authorised to recall products which fail safety tests, or demand that companies modify certain claims, the paper said.

Pharmaceuticals are currently regulated by the Ministry of Health, while food products come under the authority of the GSM.

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Health Food Safety
Posted by Dennis, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on 27 February 2008 at 09:16 UAE time


Surely the Government need to ensure ALL food is labelled correctly, which is sadly lacking at present!

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