Half of EU countries now publish supplement databases: Portugal lags behind

Half of Europe now publishes public databases of food supplements, but Portugal remains in the dark as five EU countries demand pre-market approval, new data shows.

Five European Union member states—Cyprus, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg and Romania—require prior regulatory approval before dietary supplements can be sold, while the remaining 21 countries allow immediate market access with little more than an email notification . The divergence was highlighted on Saturday as fresh figures revealed that exactly half of EU capitals now operate public online registries of supplements, contrasting sharply with Portugal’s opaque system.

Portugal is one of the 11 EU countries that do not publish any centralised list of authorised supplements, leaving consumers and health professionals unable to verify which products are legally on sale . The lack of transparency affects an estimated €450 million segment of the national nutrition market, according to industry estimates cited by Público. Public health experts warn that without a public database, unsafe or mislabelled products can circulate undetected.

The regulatory gap has prompted calls for Lisbon to align with the bloc’s more transparent members. “Citizens have a right to know what they are ingesting,” said Dr. Ana Ferreira, a Lisbon-based nutrition toxicologist. “A public, searchable database is the minimum standard for consumer protection.” The Portuguese food safety authority, ASAE, did not respond to requests for comment on Saturday.

Across the continent, the move toward openness is uneven. Nordic and Benelux countries pioneered open registries in 2020–2022, while Central and Eastern European states have been slower to digitise their approvals. The European Commission has repeatedly urged harmonisation but has no binding powers under current food-supplement legislation.

The disclosure comes as the EU prepares a scheduled review of its 2002 food-supplement directive, expected before the end of 2027. A Commission spokesperson said on Friday that the executive is “assessing the feasibility of a Union-wide public register,” but no legislative proposal has yet been published.