FDA Seeks Comments on the Scope of Dietary Supplement Ingredients

What: On March 27, 2026, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) hosted a public meeting, “Exploring the Scope of Dietary Supplement Ingredients,” to discuss the evolving landscape of dietary supplement ingredients and how recent scientific and technological advances are shaping the industry.

Why: The FDA is seeking comments on specific questions, including:

For ingredient types such as peptides, proteins, enzymes, and microbials, what scientific criteria are important in determining the identity of a substance? For these ingredient types, what scientific criteria are important in determining whether two substances are sufficiently similar to be considered the same dietary ingredient for regulatory purposes?

  1. What is your view on whether the phrase “dietary substance for use by man to supplement the diet by increasing the total dietary intake,” as used in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, can include substances that have never been part of the diet?
  2. When existing dietary ingredients are produced using emerging technologies such as synthesis, cell culture, precision fermentation, or recombinant production, at what point does a change in production methodology meaningfully alter the ingredient’s identity, composition, or safety profile—and therefore warrant additional regulatory scrutiny or data submission?
  3. How should production technologies be characterized, e.g., in a new dietary ingredient notification—including potential byproducts, impurities, and structural or functional variations—to ensure that the FDA can adequately assess the resulting ingredient?
  4. For ingredient types such as peptides, proteins, enzymes, and microbials, what scientific criteria are important in determining the identity of a substance? For these ingredient types, what scientific criteria are important in determining whether two substances are sufficiently similar to be considered the same dietary ingredient for regulatory purposes?

Action: Review the public meeting information and submit comments before the April 27, 2026, deadline.

MEETING INFO:

Public Meeting Exploring the Scope of Dietary Supplement Ingredients

SUBMIT COMMENTS ON REGULATIONS.GOV:

Exploring the Scope of Dietary Supplement Ingredients

CONTACT:

Will Purcell

EMAIL:

will.purcell@sba.gov

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