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Dietary Supplement Regulation: How Legislation and the Market Have Changed in 2025

09 December 2025

The dietary supplement market in Russia is growing at double-digit rates: from an estimated 67 billion rubles in 2019, it reached almost 130 billion rubles in the first nine months of 2025, according to DSM Group. The growing popularity of these products is driven by the rise of healthy lifestyles, growing interest in preventative medicine, and the digitalization of sales channels. However, along with this growth comes increased government attention: the industry is expected to undergo the largest regulatory changes in recent years in 2025–2026.

Market and Online Sales Growth

By September 2025, the dietary supplement market in Russia reached 129.8 billion rubles, an increase of 24.9% compared to the same period in 2024, according to DSM Group. Over the five-year period from 2018 to 2023, the compound annual growth rate for supplements reached 18% in value terms and 6% in volume terms. The high-price segment led the sales, growing by 6.2% year-on-year. The product itself is also becoming more expensive: over the past five years, the price of a single package has almost doubled.

Analyzing sales channels, online sales are growing faster than other channels: in 2024, online sales grew by 46%. The choice of marketplaces is no accident: there, consumers often choose more affordable products from lesser-known brands. The price difference is partly explained by their pricing policies: marketplaces regulate product prices independently of the seller's recommended price and actively implement discounts.

Fighting Illegal Products

The more popular dietary supplements become, the more closely regulators scrutinize such products, and the more frequent are discussions about the ineffectiveness of current legislation. In particular, the circulation of counterfeit (fakes and illegal imports) and adulterated (containing false information) products through marketplaces. According to various estimates, the share of "gray" products already accounted for 20-45% of total dietary supplement turnover by 2022.

1. Dietary supplement labeling. The government's first step to ensuring market transparency was the introduction of a labeling system in 2023. However, this solution did not completely eradicate the problem: according to audit results, in the first half of 2025, 26 out of 32 companies (approximately 80%) submitted false information to the system and had no actual production facilities.

2. Implementation of the platform economy law. The platform economy law, which will come into force on October 1, 2026, should partially address this problem. It will oblige marketplaces to prevent the publication of dietary supplement listings that have not been state-registered. The law also requires platform operators to independently inform buyers that a product is subject to labeling.

3. Monitoring dietary supplement manufacturers. Another document aimed at addressing the problem of illegal products is the draft resolution "On Amending Certain Acts of the Government of the Russian Federation Regarding Monitoring Manufacturers of Goods Subject to Mandatory Identification Marking," which was prepared in September. It introduces stricter controls over dietary supplement manufacturers to identify those who label illegally imported products as domestically produced.

The Ministry of Industry and Trade notes that the increase in illegal turnover is due, in part, to the lack of mechanisms to verify the existence of actual production sites. This contributes to dietary supplements illegally imported into Russia being sold as Russian-made with counterfeit certificates. Monitoring of dietary supplement production will be conducted both in person (visiting the production site with photo, video, and audio recording capabilities) and remotely (via remote monitoring via the "Inspector" app). During inspections, the presence of actual production, staffing, and the necessary equipment will be assessed.

Prescribing Dietary Supplements by Doctors

A key event for the market in 2025 was the adoption of Federal Law No. 150-FZ of June 7, 2025, "On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of the Russian Federation." The amendments focused on the regulation of dietary supplements, specifically their quality, safety, and procedures for use. The law establishes a legal framework for integrating dietary supplements into the healthcare system and ridding the market of unscrupulous players. These changes came into force on September 1, 2025.

To implement Federal Law No. 150-FZ, the Ministry of Health has prepared a draft order on the procedure for prescribing such drugs by healthcare professionals. According to the document, healthcare professionals will be able to prescribe registered supplements from the list if there are appropriate indications. Supplements will be prescribed according to the use regimens established by the Ministry of Health's guidelines, in coordination with Rospotrebnadzor. Information about such prescriptions will be recorded in the patient's medical record.

Furthermore, the law imposes restrictions on physicians' interactions with supplement manufacturers. Specifically, they will be prohibited from receiving gifts, cash, or remuneration in the form of travel and entertainment expenses paid for by the companies that develop and manufacture them. Furthermore, healthcare professionals will not be able to enter into agreements regarding the prescription or recommendation of specific dietary supplements or receive samples for distribution to patients.

From Pinpoint Control to Comprehensive Market Regulation

Although Federal Law No. 150-FZ has already entered into force, full regulation will only take effect on March 1, 2026. Overall, these new initiatives demonstrate the government's intention to move from pinpoint control to comprehensive regulation of the industry. A legal framework is being developed in which requirements for dietary supplements are partially aligned with some pharmaceutical standards. This should increase market transparency and guarantee consumers access to products whose quality and safety are documented.

Active business participation in the development of regulations has already proven effective: discussions of drafts at federal level have helped to soften a number of requirements and make them more realistic for the industry. However, further adjustments will require both continued dialogue with the government and investment in research, production quality, and effectiveness verification.

As the regulations come into force, large players will be able to strengthen their positions through their ability to comply with stricter requirements, while some smaller manufacturers will come under pressure. Due to the high share of the gray market, some companies themselves support the continued tightening of regulations within national jurisdictions. For the state, this means maintaining a balance between oversight and support for competition.

Ultimately, the success of the new regulatory model will depend on the degree of coordinated interaction between the state and businesses. If control mechanisms, quality assurance, and risk management are implemented consistently and in line with market opportunities, the industry can achieve sustainable growth, a reduction in the share of substandard products, and increased consumer confidence.

"New regulatory initiatives offer significant opportunities for dietary supplement manufacturers: including products in the list of supplements recommended by doctors will significantly expand the target audience and strengthen consumer confidence in the entire category. However, there is a risk of overregulation. For example, the requirement that active ingredients in dietary supplements be listed exclusively in Russian clinical guidelines appears overly strict, given the lack of consensus in Russia on the effectiveness of many nutraceuticals. This could lead to the exclusion from circulation of beneficial products that are effective for certain population groups. Dietary supplements are not drugs; their primary purpose is disease prevention, not treatment. Evaluating them using criteria applied to drugs distorts the very essence of the category and could hinder innovation. We are interested in improving the quality and trust in dietary supplements, but this requires a balanced approach — flexible regulation that stimulates the development of product diversity and meets the real health needs of consumers," says Natalia Eromchik, Marketing Director at Siberian Wellness.

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Source: Retail.ru

09 December 2025