Food supplements containing plants are regulated by Royal Decree of 31 August 2021 (only available in Dutch and French) also known as the Plants Order.
For the plant parts listed in this document, proof that the ingredient does not fall under Novel food legislation must be included in the notification file.
This decree contains among others, the following items:
- a notification procedure before launching food supplements on the market;
- requirements for labelling and advertising.
In the appendix to this decree, there are 3 lists:
- a list of plants which are not allowed for use in or as foodstuffs. This means that any part, preparation or fruit of those plants must not be consumed as such and must not be used for preparing foodstuffs.
- a list of eatable mushrooms;
- a list of plants which are allowed in food supplements. For some of those plants, maximum amounts are laid down per daily portion, for which a list of recommended analysis methods has been drawn up (only available in Dutch and French).
For food supplements in the form of capsules, tablets, … containing essential oils of plants additional date on the safety of the product is necessary. The required data are collected in the “Data Sheet for Essential Oils and Concretes (.WORD)” that has to be annexed to the notification file.