Formula Works · services
Supplement website compliance
Supplements are among the most tightly regulated products you can advertise. Formula Works' in-house regulatory team reviews your website's claims, product pages and labelling wording before launch, so you market boldly and legally.
The risk of getting it wrong
The wrong health claim can trigger regulator or ASA action and force you to pull copy, packaging or products — after you have paid to create them. Most web agencies have never read the claims rules; they design first and leave the risk with you. We review before anything goes live.
What we review
- Health and nutrition claims on every product page, checked against UK rules
- Homepage, category and campaign copy — anywhere a claim can hide
- Labelling wording, so pack and site tell the same lawful story
- Testimonials and user content, a commonly missed claims risk
Who does the reviewing
This isn't a plugin or a checklist PDF. The review is done by the Supplement Factory group's own regulatory and technical team — the same people who clear claims for products manufactured at our Ashford facility, working alongside formulation scientists who understand the ingredients behind every claim.
Questions
What claims can a supplement website legally make in the UK?
Broadly, only authorised nutrition and health claims — wording from the GB register that links a specific nutrient to a normal function of the body, such as "vitamin C contributes to the normal function of the immune system". General wellbeing language is allowed when it is backed by an authorised claim alongside it. Anything that suggests treating, preventing or curing a condition is off the table.
What's the difference between a health claim and a medicinal claim?
A health claim links a nutrient to a normal bodily function and can be lawful if it is on the authorised register. A medicinal claim — treating, curing or preventing a disease — legally turns your supplement into an unlicensed medicine, which is a far more serious problem than an advertising slap on the wrist. It is the single most dangerous line to cross, and the one we police hardest.
Can I use customer testimonials and reviews on my site?
Yes — but testimonials count as claims too. A five-star review saying a product "fixed my joint pain" is a medicinal claim, even though a customer wrote it. We review how testimonials and user content are collected and displayed so social proof works for you without importing someone else's unlawful wording.
My site is already live — can you audit what I have?
Yes. We review your existing product pages, claims and labelling, flag what needs to change and reword it. Far better to find the problems in a friendly audit than in a letter from a regulator — and the rewording usually sells harder than the original, because it has to be specific.
What happens if a claim I want to make isn't allowed?
We reword it. There is almost always a compliant way to communicate a product's genuine value — our job is finding the version that keeps its selling power and stays inside the rules.
Is this legal advice?
No — it is expert regulatory review by a supplement manufacturer, not a law firm. For contentious matters we will tell you plainly when specialist legal advice is worth taking.
Who enforces supplement advertising rules in the UK?
Several bodies, depending on what went wrong: the Advertising Standards Authority polices marketing under the CAP Code, Trading Standards enforces food law locally, and if wording strays into medicinal territory the MHRA becomes involved — the outcome nobody wants. Our review is designed so none of them ever have a reason to write to you.
Can I say my supplement "boosts immunity" or "boosts energy"?
Usually not in that wording — "boost" claims are generally not on the authorised register. What you can often say, with the right nutrients at the right levels, is register wording such as "contributes to the normal function of the immune system" or "contributes to the reduction of tiredness and fatigue". Our job is matching your formula to the strongest wording it has legitimately earned.
Are before-and-after photos allowed for supplements?
They are high-risk and usually inadvisable: they tend to imply medicinal or weight-loss effects, and weight-control claims have their own strict rules — for example, claims about rate or amount of weight loss are not permitted. There are safer, compliant ways to show real results and real customers, and we design those in.
Do the same rules apply to social media and influencers?
Yes — the CAP Code covers your Instagram caption and your influencers' posts just as it covers your website, plus ad-disclosure rules on top. A compliant website undermined by a non-compliant reel is still a problem, so we provide claims guidance your whole marketing operation can use.
What about Amazon and other marketplaces?
Claims rules follow the product, not the platform — a listing on Amazon must obey the same rules as your own site, and marketplaces increasingly run their own compliance sweeps that can delist you without warning. The claims framework we clear for your website applies directly to your listings.
My product is CBD or a novel ingredient — does anything extra apply?
Yes — some ingredients sit under additional regimes, such as novel-food authorisation for CBD. As a group that manufactures across these categories, we know where the lines are and will tell you what your specific product can and cannot say before you commit to packaging or campaigns.
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