Mandatory product listing requirements could cost dietary supplement industry $20 million for initial compliance, AHPA estimates

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Early estimates just released by the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA; Silver Spring, MD) put the dietary supplement industry’s initial cost of complying with the requirements of new legislation for mandatory product listing (MPL) at nearly $20 million. The “Dietary Supplement Listing Act of 2022” (S. 4090) proposed by Senators Dick Durbin (D-IL) and Mike Braun (R-IN) in April would require every dietary supplement sold in the U.S. to be listed in a federal database, which would track ongoing details such as product names, ingredient lists, copies of labels, allergen statements, and structure/function claims.

AHPA says its $20 million estimate covers only the cost of preparing product listings (including data entry) and “does not include associated training costs or other year-over-year costs of continuing compliance.”

It notes, “AHPA staff are continuing to gather data from members of industry to refine this projection.”

In a press release, AHPA’s director of regulatory affairs, Robert Marriott, said, “We are conducting this study because the fundamental question of cost has been missing from the mandatory product listing conversation to date. This information is essential for all stakeholders to weigh the supposed benefits of MPL against its costs to the industry.”