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Do's & Don'ts in Packaging Weight Management Supplements

Last updated: December-15,2021

Do's & Don'ts in Packaging Weight Management Supplements

The packaging of your weight management supplement is the first thing that a potential buyer will notice whether they’re shopping in store or online. An often-overlooked step in the overall contract manufacturing process, dietary supplement packaging design demands careful thinking and can play a crucial role in either the success or failure of your supplement brand. Over the next few minutes, I’ll share my thoughts as to what is required for successfully packaging weight management supplements.

Basics of Weight Management Supplement Packaging

When it comes to designing an excellent weight management supplement package, appealing visualization is as important as the convenience, and so is the value and freshness retention of your weight management supplements over time.

Weight Management Supplement Packaging – The Do’s

Great Design Is Vital, but So Is the Compliance

Your dietary supplement packaging design should be FDA-compliant. The FDA has stringent dietary supplement packaging regulations that all dietary supplement brand owners need to follow.

What Are FDA Rules for Packaging of Dietary Supplements?

Your weight management supplement label should include supplement name, net quantity, Supplement Facts panel, and list of ingredients, along with the place of business of the manufacturer, packer, and distributor.[i]

The Supplement Facts panel must mention serving size, list of ingredients with the amount per serving size (by weight), and percent of the daily value (%DV) with a disclosure statement (if your product has more than 13 grams of fat, 4 grams of saturated fat, 480 mg of sodium, or 60 mg of cholesterol per labeled serving, or, for a product with a reference amount of 30 g or less or 2 tablespoons or less, per 50 grams).

Your weight management supplement should be labeled as a ‘dietary supplement’ along with the mention of adverse effects of the supplements known to the brand owner.

The FDA specifies that a dietary supplement’s label cannot claim to treat, cure, or diagnose a specific disease or condition. If done, the dietary supplement would be unapproved and regarded as an illegal drug. To maintain your product’s status as a dietary supplement, the label needs to follow the provisions in the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) of 1994.[ii]

To be clear, some claims regarding weight loss may be acceptable if there is published human research to support it, and if it includes a statement about the need to include diet and exercise as part of the program. Be careful, however, to avoid any claims about obesity (which is considered a medical condition.) Keep in mind that even claims like ‘helps manage a healthy weight’ still require that you have human research to support it.

Pay Close Attention to Functional Packaging

Rapidly changing consumer lifestyles, evolving product formats, and availability of various packaging alternatives are all key factors that brand owners need to consider when designing a functional packaging design for your supplement. How important is functional packaging? In short, it’s becoming as critical as its appearance. Effective functional packaging ensures operational efficiency along with a positive customer experience. You can design your packaging to answer the following aspects:

  • Does my weight management supplement packaging adequately protect the freshness and quality of the product?
  • Is it offering ease to my customers while re-closing and re-opening?
  • Does the packaging offer adequate protection against tampering, and is it easy to detect it in case of any eventuality?
  • Is the communication on the packaging clear and unambiguous and gives adequate information?
4-Marketing-Strategies-to-Make-Your-Supplement-Brand-a-Hit - Labeling and Packaging

Choose the Best Packaging Option

Weight management supplements come in various forms, including tablets, capsules, powders, and liquids.[iii]

For packaging capsules or tablets, you can use glass or plastic bottles with the addition of desiccants for absorbing moisture to retain freshness. As an alternative to PET bottle packaging, you can use blister packs for tablet or capsule weight management supplements.[iv]

You can use stick pack packaging for your weight management supplement powders, which offers your customers convenience - especially if they’re on-the-go and want an accurate measured dose of your product. Alternatively, you can also use bottles or canisters.

For liquid weight management supplement packaging, you can either use PET bottle packaging or use pouches or packets for a single-use purpose.

Plastic bottles, canisters, and jars are the preferred format for weight management supplement packaging.[v] [vi]

Custom packaging boxes give your supplement a professional and unique look that helps it stand out on the shelf.[vii] Additionally, custom boxes and packaging satisfy your unique packaging needs in terms of size and style and offer additional protection for fragile products, such as glass bottles.

Appearance Matters

A study shows that 90% of consumers make purchasing decisions within 90 seconds after seeing the product.[viii] [ix] Thus, your packaging design plays an essential role in grabbing your customers’ attention. Select packaging box design and colors that can go well with your brand.

chris-bennett-supplement-packaging-and-labeling-quote-1

Weight Management Supplement Packaging – The Don’ts

Avoid Unusually Shaped Dietary Supplement Packaging

Retailers are skeptical about unusually shaped supplement packaging as it can occupy additional space. We recommend using nutritional supplement packaging with a relatively standard shape and size. It won’t give retailers any reason not to stock your product. It’s OK to be different, but thinking too far outside the box may end up doing more harm than good.

Avoid Packaging Dietary Supplements in Custom Bottles

Using custom bottles can have more disadvantages than benefits. You will end up spending on a much higher minimum order quantity and storage unless you are a brand owner with your manufacturing facility. A contract manufacturer may charge a stocking fee for the storage. If you have multiple bottle sizes, it will further increase these expenses.

If you unexpectedly need to manufacture more supplements to avoid going out of stock and you have neared the end of your supply, making these custom bottles will take at least 8 more weeks. You can easily save this heartache and cost by using stock bottles.

What Are the New Trends in Packaging?

Here are some of the latest weight management supplement packaging design trends.[x]

Increased Focus on Counterfeit Prevention

Today’s consumers are more aware and prefer safe and quality supplements. Manufacturers ensure brand integrity and protection against counterfeiting by implementing measures such as holograms, tamper-evident labels, fingerprint technology, and infrared/color-changing inks in their product packaging.

More Inclination Towards Sustainable Packaging

New packaging technologies allow the creation of lighter and thinner packaging containers that can hold the same amount of product.

Convenience Is Gaining Importance

Today’s consumers prefer supplement packaging that facilitates on-the-go use and quick dispensing and disposal. The resealable containers, blister packs, and single-use packs are becoming popular.

NutraScience Labs is a leading supplement packaging manufacturer and can help you with a wide variety of weight management supplement design and packaging options. We possess over 120 years of contract supplement manufacturing experience and can guide you throughout the entire weight management manufacturing process. Our award-winning label design, finishing, and print services can help you design eye-catching, FDA-compliant supplement labeling and packaging. Our world-class turnkey services encompass supplement labeling & packaging, supplement warehouse, and drop shipping.

Call us at 855-492-7388 to learn how we can help you design a high-quality weight management supplement that’s packaged and labeled according to industry regulations. Alternatively, you can send us your request to receive a free nutraceutical manufacturing quote in 48 business hours or less.


References:

[i] https://cremedemint.com/blog/package-design/everything-you-need-to-know-about-the-fda-rules-for-dietary-supplement-labels/

[ii] https://www.fda.gov/food/information-consumers-using-dietary-supplements/questions-and-answers-dietary-supplements

[iii] https://ods.od.nih.gov/factsheets/WeightLoss-HealthProfessional/

[iv] https://www.assemblies.com/best-ways-options-package-dietary-supplements/

[v] https://www.nutraceuticalsworld.com/issues/2017-07/view_features/packaging-considerations-for-dietary-supplements/

[vi] https://www.grandviewresearch.com/industry-analysis/supplements-nutrition-packaging-market

[vii] https://vocal.media/journal/importance-of-custom-packaging-boxes

[viii] https://www.nosco.com/blog/packaging-considerations-for-dietary-supplements

[ix] https://www.emerald.com/insight/content/doi/10.1108/00251740610673332/full/html

[x] https://elispackaging.com/packaging-options/nutritional-supplement-packaging/

February 19th, 2021

About the Author:

 
Vincent Tricarico

Vincent Tricarico is currently the Vice President of Contract Manufacturing at NutraScience Labs. With nearly 20 years of direct-to-consumer and business-to-business experience, Mr. Tricarico is a respected executive in the dietary supplement industry and is well-known for his ability to consistently build and grow successful teams that produce results. Over the years, his work has been published in many industry trade publications, such as Natural Products Insider, Nutritional Outlook, and WholeFoods Magazine.