Supplement manufacturing for EU brands
British VitaTech makes custom and private label supplements Europe's brands can sell across the EU, formulated within EU rules, with labels and notification documents prepared for each member state and the brand's EU operator.
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Custom and private label supplements Europe-wide, made in Leicester
Custom and private label supplements for brands that sell in the EU are developed and made by British VitaTech in Leicester. For private label supplements Europe-wide, we build each product for the member states on your plan: a formula within EU rules and each country's maximum amounts, and labels in the languages each country requires, with your EU operator's name and address. We prepare the documents your operator needs to notify and place the product on the market, from the notification pack to the certificates of analysis, and your brand owns the formula.
European supplement sales grew 10% in value in 2025 across the channels IQVIA tracks (IQVIA data presented in Milan and reported by Puntoeffe, May 2026). The EU has one food supplement directive and 27 national ways of applying it. Great Britain and the EU authorise novel foods and other regulated products separately, so an ingredient can be approved in one market and not the other. We screen every ingredient against both lists, so one formula can serve both markets wherever the rules allow.
Formats and packs for EU shelves
We make capsules, tablets, gummies, powders, sachets and stick packs, and liquids in Leicester for EU brands. Opaque capsule shells and tablet coatings for the EU use colours other than titanium dioxide, which the EU no longer permits in food. Each member state's labels are kept apart on the line, checked against approved artwork at the start of every run and reconciled at the end, and every unit carries its batch code and best before date. Outer cases carry product, quantity, batch and best before, so your EU operator's warehouse can trace every carton.
An EU operator on the label and notification country by country
The EU at a glance, as of October 2026
| Topic | EU rule | What it means for your product |
|---|---|---|
| Composition | EU law lists the vitamins and minerals food supplements can contain, and the permitted forms of each | A form outside the list cannot be used |
| Maximum amounts | Set nationally until harmonised EU levels are adopted | A dose legal in one country can be refused in another |
| Claims | Authorised EU Register claims, or wording with the same meaning; botanical claims on hold | Nutrients carry the authorised claims |
| Novel foods | Authorisation on the Union list | Use only within the authorised conditions |
| Notification | Member states can require it, with a model of the label | Your EU operator files it, before or at first sale |
| Responsible operator | The brand if established in the EU, otherwise the importer | Its name and address go on the label |
| Languages | A language consumers easily understand; member states can require official languages | Labels planned country by country |
| Northern Ireland | EU food rules under the Windsor Framework | Built to EU rules, unless moved under the retail movement scheme |
An EU operator named on the label
A brand based in Great Britain needs an EU company or importer named on pack. As of October 2026, the business responsible for food information in the EU is the operator under whose name the food is marketed or, if that operator is not established in the Union, the importer into the Union market, and its name and address must appear on the label. We are your manufacturer, not your EU operator: we prepare the documents and labels, and your operator places the product on the market.
Notification, member state by member state
Each member state can require a notification with a model of the label, and the rules differ by country. As of October 2026, the Czech Ministry of Agriculture asks for notification before a supplement is first placed on the Czech market, with the label text in Czech, and the Finnish Food Authority asks for it at the latest when the product goes on sale, with a model of the Finnish and Swedish labelling. For a product made in Great Britain, the notifier is the food business operator placing it on that market. We prepare the notification pack, and your EU operator files it.
Traceability and shipping from Great Britain
EU general food law requires every food business to identify who supplied it and the businesses it supplied. Our full mock recall runs forward and backward with mass balance in seconds, so your operator can trace any batch. Goods that meet the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement's rules of origin enter the EU with zero tariffs (European Commission, as of October 2026), and we supply the ingredient origin data your customs adviser needs to confirm that a product qualifies. Our page on supplement manufacturing for every market covers documents and trade terms for each route.
Languages, register claims and national limits in the EU
Mandatory statements and languages
Every EU label carries the name "food supplement", the names of the categories of nutrients or substances, the recommended daily portion, a warning not to exceed it, a statement that food supplements should not be used as a substitute for a varied diet, and a statement that the product should be stored out of the reach of young children. Mandatory information must appear in a language easily understood by consumers where the food is sold, each member state can require one or more of the EU's official languages, and one label can carry several. Text needs an x-height of at least 1.2 mm, or 0.9 mm where the largest surface is under 80 cm², so pack size decides how many languages fit on one label; a booklet label adds space where they don't.
Claims: the EU Register only
Only authorised EU Register claims can be made, with their conditions of use, such as a vitamin or mineral present at least at a source level; wording with the same meaning is allowed, and we use the register's exact wording. Botanical claims remain on hold in the EU and can be used only within the limits of transitional rules, so nutrients with authorised claims carry the label, and each botanical is described by species, plant part and extract without health claims. Our guide to claims, evidence and regulation by market sets out the detail.
Novel foods
A food not used for human consumption to a significant degree within the Union before 15 May 1997 is a novel food and needs authorisation on the Union list, with the conditions of use set there. The European Commission's novel food catalogue records the status of many botanicals and other ingredients, sometimes by source or use: L-theanine extracted from green tea, for example, is not novel in food supplements, while other sources are. We screen every ingredient against the GB and EU lists in-house.
Maximum levels and national plant lists
As of October 2026, the EU has no harmonised maximum amounts of vitamins and minerals, so member states set their own limits, and a product can be legal in one country and refused in another, as NutraIngredients reported in June 2026. The science behind a limit is the tolerable upper intake level: EFSA's upper level for vitamin D in adults is 100 µg daily (EFSA, 2023). EU-wide limits are being prepared, so we set doses with headroom and flag the nutrients most likely to change.
Plants are regulated nationally too: Italy, for example, keeps its own list of plants permitted in food supplements, and other countries apply their own rules. We check each plant, plant part and extract against the rules of every target country.
Northern Ireland and the retail movement scheme
Northern Ireland follows EU food rules under the Windsor Framework. New novel food authorisations for its market follow the EU route, while food moved from Great Britain for final consumption there, by businesses registered for the Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme, can meet UK public health standards, with "Not for EU" labels where required (NI Business Info, as of October 2026). We plan the formula and label for the route your product takes.
Where EU demand grows, from beauty to women's health
Demand is growing in four areas.
- Beauty from within. Beauty supplements grew 13% in Europe in 2025 (IQVIA, reported by Puntoeffe, May 2026), and collagen 22% in France (IQVIA France, April 2026).
- Memory and concentration. Up 17% in France in 2025 (IQVIA France, 2026). Authorised wording comes from nutrients, for example "Zinc contributes to normal cognitive function", for food that is at least a source of zinc.
- Women's health. Up 8.6% in France in 2025 (IQVIA France, 2026).
- Online. About a quarter of European supplement sales (IQVIA, reported by Puntoeffe), and Amazon's five largest European stores grew 30% in 2025 (Front Row estimates, 2026). Our page on supplements for Amazon, TikTok Shop and online brands covers what the marketplaces ask for.
Formats move too. In France, gummies fell 5% in pharmacies in 2025, while orodispersible tablets grew 43% (IQVIA France, April 2026). Brands looking for a private label gummy manufacturer Europe-wide get gummies made in Leicester, with EU additive, sweetener and allergen rules built into the formula from the brief; our page on gummy manufacturing explains the science. For your next product, pair a growing category with authorised nutrient claims and a format that suits your channel.
Seven signed-off steps to an EU launch
As a UK supplement manufacturer for Europe, we run every EU project through seven steps, with your sign-off at every gate.
- Market plan. We list the member states, channels and marketplaces you plan to sell in, and confirm your EU operator or importer.
- Screening. We check every ingredient against the Union list and the novel food catalogue, the permitted vitamin and mineral forms, and the national maximum amounts and plant rules in each target country, in-house against the public registers.
- Formula. We set doses against the strictest country on your plan, use only the vitamin and mineral forms on the EU list, and keep colours, sweeteners and other additives within their EU authorised uses.
- Claims and label. We use EU Register wording with its conditions of use, the mandatory statements and the languages each country requires, with your operator's name and address.
- Notification pack. For each member state that requires notification, we prepare the label model and product details your operator files.
- Stability. Stability runs in the final pack, and overages are set from measured loss rates, so declared values stay within the European Commission's tolerances through shelf life: plus 50% and minus 20% for vitamins, plus 45% and minus 20% for minerals (European Commission guidance, December 2012).
- Release and documents. Every batch is tested by accredited partner laboratories (ISO/IEC 17025) as part of every order, then released by quality control against its specification; nothing is dispatched without quality control sign-off. You receive the specification, certificates of analysis, stability data and the claims review. We keep three retained samples per batch for shelf life plus one year.
Our page on testing and batch release explains how each batch is checked. British VitaTech is ISO 9001, HACCP and GMP certified by BSI, and FDA registered. BRCGS implementation under way, certification expected in early 2027. The certificate scopes are on our quality and accreditations page.
Your formula is yours. The formula, its specification and the data behind it belong to your brand, whichever member states you sell in; read how formula ownership works. Selling in the US as well? Our page on custom supplement manufacturing for US brands covers FDA rules, and our regulation watch tracks EU changes each quarter.
Tell us which member states you plan to enter. Start your project.
References: Directive 2002/46/EC on food supplements (2002); Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011 on food information to consumers (2011); Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006 on nutrition and health claims (2006); Regulation (EU) 2015/2283 on novel foods (2015); Regulation (EC) No 178/2002, general food law (2002); Commission Regulation (EU) 2022/63 on titanium dioxide (2022); European Commission, guidance on tolerances for nutrient values declared on a label (2012); Food Standards Agency, update to the Board on the SPS programme (2026).
Where this is going
To 2030
Up in importance: a UK-EU SPS agreement, still being negotiated, would make EU authorisations govern novel foods in GB too
To 2036
Steady: EU approvals stay slow, and GB-only authorisations lapse once the SPS agreement applies
What to watch
Timing and terms of the SPS agreement
Questions brands ask
Who notifies a food supplement in an EU member state?
The food business operator that places it on that market, which for your brand is your EU company or importer. Each member state can require a notification with a model of the label. As of October 2026, the Czech Republic asks for it before first placing on the market, and Finland at the latest when the product goes on sale. We prepare the notification pack, with the label model and product details, and your EU operator files it.
Do we need an EU company or importer on the label?
Yes, if your brand is not established in the EU. As of October 2026, the business responsible for food information is the operator under whose name the food is marketed or, where that operator is outside the EU, the importer into the Union market, and its name and address go on the label. We build that into the artwork from the first draft and check it at every proof.
Which languages must an EU label use?
A language easily understood by consumers in each member state where the product is sold, and each member state can require one or more of the EU's official languages, as of October 2026. One label can carry several languages. We plan shared multilingual labels where the pack is large enough for the required text sizes, and booklet labels or separate labels where it is not, each checked against approved artwork on every run.
Can we use botanical health claims in the EU?
Only within narrow limits: as of October 2026, the EU's evaluation of botanical claims remains on hold, and on-hold claims can be used only within the limits of transitional rules. We let nutrients with authorised claims carry the label, in the EU Register's exact wording with its conditions of use, and describe each botanical by species, plant part and extract without health claims. Our claims review records the basis for every claim on the pack.
How do you handle vitamin and mineral limits across EU countries?
We check every dose against each target country. As of October 2026, the EU has no harmonised maximum amounts for vitamins and minerals, so member states set their own, and a dose legal in one country can be refused in another. EU-wide limits are being prepared, so we set doses with headroom, use only the permitted forms of each nutrient and flag the nutrients most likely to change.
Do you make private label gummies for EU brands?
Yes. We make gummies in Leicester for EU brands, alongside capsules, tablets, powders, sachets and stick packs, and liquids. EU additive, sweetener and allergen rules are built into each formula from the brief, and every batch is tested by accredited partner laboratories, with an active assay on every gummy batch as standard. Opaque capsule shells and tablet coatings for the EU use colours other than titanium dioxide, which the EU no longer permits in food.
How do Northern Ireland's rules differ from Great Britain's?
Northern Ireland follows EU food rules under the Windsor Framework, so new novel food authorisations for its market follow the EU route. As of October 2026, food moved from Great Britain for final consumption there, by businesses registered for the Northern Ireland Retail Movement Scheme, can meet UK public health standards instead, with "Not for EU" labels where required. We plan the formula and label for the route your product takes.
Start your project
Tell us what you want to make. Every project starts with a conversation about your product, your customers and your markets.