The Rapidly Growing Health Functional Food Market... A Quality Competition Showdown

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Seon-ae] As the elderly population with a strong interest in health increases, the health functional food market, which has been steadily growing, continues to show remarkable growth due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Accordingly, brand competition is becoming increasingly fierce day by day.

According to the Korea Health Supplements Association on the 6th, the health functional food market size grew at an average annual rate of 11%, from 1.631 trillion KRW in 2014 to 4.6 trillion KRW last year. As the market expands, each company is targeting consumers by emphasizing differentiation through highlighting ‘quality,’ ‘safety,’ and ‘certified ingredients’ to increase trust in their products.

Nu Skin Korea’s health functional food brand Pharmanex recently announced that its ‘AgeLOC Youthspan 3’ has obtained sports certification from the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) in the United States, recognizing its safety. This is the first time that a domestic manufacturer and domestically produced health functional food have received NSF sports certification.

NSF is the only certification body recognized by the American National Standards Institute for health functional foods and their ingredients. To obtain NSF sports certification, products must pass tests for more than 272 banned substances as designated by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the American Football and Major League Baseball Players Associations, as well as facility inspections. With NSF sports certification, athletes who cannot consume just any food can safely consume these products.

‘AgeLOC Youthspan 3’ is a health functional food that can be conveniently taken twice a day and contains omega-3 (EPA and DHA-containing oil), comprehensive vitamins & minerals, and phytonutrients (secondary ingredients). It helps improve memory, blood circulation, normal immune function, blood triglyceride levels, and basic health aspects such as eye and bone health, enabling a vibrant and healthy life.

Jeil Health Science’s health functional food brand Scenthill launched ‘Green Propolis Plus Vita D,’ a product that can help with antioxidant effects and immune enhancement. The main ingredient is propolis collected from the sap of Baccharis trees in the Minas Gerais region, a highland area in Brazil, and only propolis officially certified by the Brazilian government is used to make the product. The composition of propolis varies depending on the type of sap collected, and this propolis contains more flavonoids, an active ingredient that helps with antioxidant effects, than regular propolis.

The flavonoid content of ‘Green Propolis Plus Vita D’ is 17 mg, which is the maximum daily amount according to the standards of the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety. It also contains vitamin C, vitamin D, zinc, selenium, 12 types of mixed probiotics, and fruit and vegetable powders. Each package contains 90 tablets, and the recommended intake is 3 tablets once a day.

Nongshim’s ‘Lifil Derma Collagen’ main ingredient, ‘Low Molecular Collagen Peptide NS,’ is a collagen component developed independently by Nongshim and is the first to receive certification from the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety using domestic technology. Using enzymatic hydrolysis technology that extracts flavor components from raw materials, it produced collagen peptides at the smallest peptide level among domestic commercial products. The smaller the molecular weight of collagen, the better its absorption. Human application tests confirmed improvements in skin moisture and keratin levels from 4 weeks, skin elasticity from 8 weeks, and eye wrinkles from 12 weeks.

‘Lifil Derma Collagen’ also contains vitamins C, D, E, zinc, biotin, and selenium. Taking 3 tablets once a day provides 1,650 mg of collagen along with the daily intake of vitamins and minerals all at once.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.