This week’s headlines included coverage the U.S. FDA declaring NMN lawful in dietary supplements, Danone’s unveiling of its new OneBiome lab, Iovate’s restructuring efforts, Haleon’s Bone Up campaign in China and Seed Health’s new Co-Biotics line.
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has responded to a Citizen Petition from the Natural Products Association (NPA) and the Alliance for Natural Health USA (ANH) on the status of NMN, declaring the vitamin B3 form to be lawful for use in dietary supplements.
In a letter signed by Donald Prater, DVM, principal deputy director for human foods, the FDA stated that it had revised its interpretation of the race-to-market clause (that an ingredient that is first a drug cannot then become a dietary ingredient).
“We now conclude that NMN is not excluded from the definition of dietary supplement under section 201(ff)(3)(B). Specifically, although NMN was authorized for investigation as a new drug, and substantial clinical investigations of NMN have been instituted and made public, NMN was marketed as a dietary supplement in the United States before such authorization,” the agency stated in the letter, noting that it is aware of evidence that the ingredient was marketed as a dietary supplement in the U.S. as early as 2017.
Daniel Fabricant, PhD, president and CEO of NPA, welcomed the decision, stating: “FDA’s decision today confirms NMN is lawful in supplements, and we now call on e-commerce platforms to immediately restore NMN products to the market. We will continue pressing Congress, the courts and the administration until FDA stops abusing the drug preclusion clause once and for all.”
With the launch of a new laboratory in Paris-Saclay, Danone plans to ‘push the boundaries’ of microbiome science and advance its work in personalized nutrition.
The OneBiome lab, inaugurated Sept. 29, is focused on developing targeted solutions by combining advanced mircobiology, AI and data science.
its inauguration marks the start of an expanded research agenda to explore microbial interventions across the lifespan, with a particular focus on specific health conditions, such as allergies and obesity.
“We know that the microbiome is a central regulator of overall health,” Rocio Martin, Danone’s vice president of life science innovation, told NutraIngredients. “However, we see some limitations of the knowledge of the microbiome today.
“The knowledge we have built in the last few years has been quite descriptive. We know about the qualities and the types of microbes in the gut, but we want to bring it to the next level and understand what they do, how they do it and how we can impact health through nutrition.”
Iovate Health Sciences, makers of iconic supplement brands Hydroxycut and MuscleTech, recently filed for creditor protection in Canada as it pursues restructuring to execute an “aggressive growth strategy”, says the company’s CEO.
The Ontario-based company filed a Notice of Intention to Make a Proposal (“NOI”) pursuant to Canada’s Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act (“BIA”) on Sept. 5, 2025. The bankruptcy covers Iovate Health Sciences International Inc., Iovate Health Sciences U.S.A. Inc. and Northern Innovations Holding Corp.
According to KSV Restructuring Inc., which is acting as proposal trustee, while the NOI is pursuant to the BIA, it is important to note that Iovate is not bankrupt.
“The NOI filing is intended to provide the companies with the stability and breathing room to advance a restructuring plan that is in the best interests of its stakeholders and allow the businesses to continue in the long term,” KSV shared.
“This restructuring paves the way for us to execute on an aggressive growth strategy rooted heavily in product innovation and development—growing our product portfolio, developing new offerings, and expanding retailer partnerships,” Wes Parris, CEO of Iovate, told NutraIngredients. “Going forward, we will remain committed to customers, suppliers and partners while our day-to-day business continues without interruption.”
Haleon is scaling up its Bone Up campaign in China and is exploring plans to bring the initiative across Asia-Pacific amid high prevalence of osteoporosis.
This year, the campaign is expanding into China’s county markets, reaching over 1,000 counties and cities.
Healthcare practitioners are the main target audience of the campaign’s expansion. The plan is to reach out to 600,000 primary healthcare institutions, educating 200,000 doctors, and screening 100,000 individuals who may be at risk of osteoporosis.
China is Haleon’s key market when it comes to its bone health dietary supplement business Caltrate.
“The initiative is designed to address osteoporosis-related challenges by focusing on three core areas: scientific awareness, scientific assessment and scientific solutions,” Alicia Ng, Wider Asia R&D head for Haleon, told NutraIngredients.
Microbiome science company Seed, best known for its synbiotic formulations, is expanding its portfolio with three new products: DM-02 Daily Multivitamin, AM-02 Energy + Focus and PM-02 Sleep + Restore.
The products, which the company is calling Co-Biotics, are an expansion of its consumers use case and consider not only the health of the host but also the health of the microbiome, Cathrin Bowtell, Seed’s CEO, told NutraIngredients.
The products are available initially via the company’s website Seed.com and on Amazon, and then nationwide in Target (Oct.11) and Sprouts (Nov. 3).
“We don’t believe in SKU proliferation,” Bowtell said. “Everything we do is a tango between science and commercial opportunity.”
She added that the multivitamin category is ripe for disruption, while “a large number of our members tell us constantly that they wish we would prioritize sleep and energy.”
