SAMR publishes the Health Food Naming Guideline 2019

On 12.11.2019, the SAMR published the Health Food Naming Guideline 2019 (No.53-2019) for the naming rule of registered and filed health food in China, which was written in accordance with China’s Food Safety Law and Health Foods Registration and Filing Regulations.

There are four major subjects in the guideline, which can be used as a reference for the registration of health food products and the filing of the health food product name in China.

Some basic principles include, but are not limited to the following:

Components for naming the product

– The health product name is formed in the order of brand name, common name, and attribute name

Basic principles for naming the product

– The name of the products should all be unique

Prohibited content in the product name

– Do not include names of people, places and pinyin
– Do not include any exaggerated, extreme, or false expressions
– Do not include any reference to human organs and cells
– Do not include expressions that mislead consumers’ perception for disease prevention

Declaration and assessment criteria for the product name

– For including the ingredient name in the product name, only the standardised version of the ingredient name can be used