Senior Regulators Give Guidance on Accessing Russian Market
According to Russia’s Federal Agency for Consumer Rights and Human Wellbeing 62 percent of the market is currently held by Russian companies, 18 percent by US businesses and 6 percent by Chinese companies.
21/09/07 Officials from Russia held an expert training session in Washington DC last week for dietary supplement companies to discover and master the country’s regulatory approval processes.
The workshop, organised by the International Alliance of Dietary/Food Supplement Associations (IADSA) in conjunction with US dietary supplement associations AHPA, CRN, NPA and UNPA, provided a unique insight into Russia’s growing market and regulatory system. The workshop also highlighted some of the daily problems regulators face, such as the quality of some products and compliance issues relating to labelling.
Speakers at the workshop explained in detail how to work through the regulatory process to bring products to market, and stressed the importance of the voluntary certification procedures in place to ensure that products meet the regulatory requirements.
"We welcome quality products coming from abroad and encourage manufacturers not to be afraid to register products,” said Dr Liudmila Simkalova from the Russian Federal Agency for Consumer Rights and Human Wellbeing. "Bioactive food supplements are a very important part of everyday life and an important part of health and wellbeing.”
According to Russia’s Federal Agency for Consumer Rights and Human Wellbeing 62 percent of the market is currently held by Russian companies, 18 percent by US businesses and 6 percent by Chinese companies. Many foreign businesses in the food supplement sector are unclear on the conditions of market entry in Russia.
Ric Hobby, Chairman of IADSA’s Company Council, said: "This was a unique event. We were honoured to have such senior and experienced officials providing companies with their knowledge and advice on how to bring products to market in Russia."
