The FDA have recently approved a qualified health claim for the marketing of cranberry dietary supplements to prevent recurrent urinary tract infections. Since then, the demand for cranberry ingredients has surged.
Further boosting the demand was a 2023 review published in Cochrane Database of Systematic Reviews.
The FDA authorised three wording options, such as “Limited scientific evidence shows that by consuming 500 mg each day of cranberry dietary supplement, healthy women who have had a urinary tract infection (UTI) may reduce their risk of recurrent UTI.”
For the Cochrane review, the authors carefully reviewed 50 randomised studies involving 8,857 participants. The authors concluded that cranberry products reduce the risk of culture-verified UTIs in women with recurrent UTIs, in children, and in people susceptible to UTIs.
“With this ruling, the FDA is raising the bar by recognising whole fruit powder for both its soluble and insoluble proanthocyanins (PACs),” said Stephen Lukawski, lead sales and business development consultant at Fruit d’Or.
Lukawski noted that not all cranberry ingredients can meet specifications to make the FDA qualified health claim. Per dose, a supplement must contain 500 mg of whole fruit cranberry powder, not just juice.
“A sprinkle of cranberry does not constitute efficacy. All companies will need to revise their formulations and decide if they want to use this claim."
"In addition to teaching consumers to look for a minimum of 500 mg on the labels of their cranberry capsules, tablets or softgels; we will reinforce the truth that a cranberry supplement should have the same color and taste as the fruit,” Lukawski states.
