To promote high-quality collaborative development in the nutrition and health industry, strengthen international exchanges and cooperation in the field of nutrition and health food standards, and reach a consensus on international standards for healthy foods, the Seminar on International Standards for Nutritious and Healthy Food was successfully held in Fangchenggang City, Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region on April 29th. With the theme of Health Claims and Harmonization in Different Countries, the seminar was a sub-event of the 2025 International Medical Innovation and Cooperation Forum, and jointly organized by the Market Supervision and Administration Bureau of Guangxi Zhuang Autonomous Region, the People's Government of Fangchenggang City, and the Chinese Nutrition Society. In-depth discussions were held on core topics such as the establishment of a transnational health claims standard system and the mutual recognition of scientific evidence. The event attracted nearly 100 participants, including scholars, representatives from scientific research institutions and enterprises from countries such as China, the US, Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, and Thailand.

Dr. E Siong Tee, former President of the Nutrition Society of Malaysia, Dr. Kalpana Bhaskaran, President of the Singapore Nutrition & Dietetics Association, and Dr. ZHU Jing, Researcher at the Beijing Academy of Science and Technology, delivered presentations on the differences in health claims regulations across countries and the evaluation systems for scientific evidence.

The Initiative for Cooperation on Evidence-Based Health Claims was declared at the Seminar. Dr. E Siong Tee, Prof. Hardinsyah, President of Food and Nutrition Society of Indonesia, Prof. WANG Yi, Director of the Nutrition Department at Gaung’anmen Hospital of China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, and representatives of the nutrition and health industry jointly announced the Initiative.

The text of the Initiative is as follows:

Evidence-based health claims are vital for public health and the health industry, and crucial for global health goals. They matter to consumers' rights and the sustainable development of healthy food. To make health claims scientific and standardized, we jointly put forward the following initiatives:

1. Embrace scientific integrity: Based on the principles of scientific rigor and integrity, promote the popularization and implementation of evidence-based health claims. Encourage cross-national and cross-field collaborative research on applying scientific evidence to health claims.

2. Adhere to the principle of truthfulness and reliability: Ensure that all health claims are based on real, reliable, and high-quality scientific evidence. Avoid the dissemination of false or misleading information and maintain the public's trust in health claims.

3. Drive fair and inclusive development: We call on governments, international organizations, research institutions and industry associations to collaborate in formulating unified international standards for ‘evidence-based health claims’, to remove trade barriers and foster fair competition in the global market for health products and services.

4. Strengthen the Awareness Oriented towards Action: In light of the actual situation of one's own country (region), actively explore the development path of evidence-based health claims, promote the deep integration of health scientific research and the development of the health industry, improve the public's ability to distinguish health information, and guide consumers to rationally choose health products and services.

Let’s work together, creating a transparent, trustworthy and sustainable environment for health claims!