Pilot Program for Small-Scale Person-to-Person Transactions of Health Functional Foods Extended Until Year-End

Rationalizing Guidelines and Adding Consumer Information

The Ministry of Food and Drug Safety announced on May 2 that it will extend the deadline for the pilot program allowing small-scale person-to-person transactions of health functional foods, which was originally set to end on May 7, until the end of this year.

Since May 8, 2024, the Ministry has been operating a pilot program that permits person-to-person transactions of health functional foods on secondhand online platforms, within the scope where food safety and distribution order can be ensured, in order to alleviate public inconvenience.

Through this extension, the Ministry plans to rationalize the "Guidelines for the Operation of the Health Functional Food Person-to-Person Transaction Pilot Program." The number of online platforms participating in the pilot program will also be further expanded to assess the impact on consumer safety and the market.

The guidelines will continue to maintain standards related to consumer safety. However, in consideration of price diversity for health functional foods and consumer transaction convenience, the criteria regarding the cumulative transaction amount cap and the requirement that products must have at least six months remaining before expiration will be rationalized. On the other hand, the guidelines will be revised to further enhance consumer safety and choice by adding provisions prohibiting illegal transactions on secondhand platforms and including instructions for reporting adverse events.

The Ministry plans to review the management systems of other platforms, such as Junggonara, which has expressed interest in participating in the pilot program in addition to Danggeun and Bungaejangter, and will further expand the list of eligible platforms. In addition, the Ministry will actively monitor the pilot program for person-to-person transactions on secondhand platforms until the end of this year, and will strengthen education and public awareness efforts to prevent consumer harm caused by guideline violations or false and exaggerated advertising.

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