No use of ginkgo in food

Decision of the Federal Court: No use of ginkgo in a food!

(14.07.2010) In the dispute over whether the proven as medicine Ginkgo biloba also added to a food, and may be advertised accordingly, the Federal Court has now made a clear verdict: in the last instance, the manufacturer of a ginkgo-containing soft drink with immediate Effect of the distribution of his product prohibited.

In the food trade, the supply of products has been growing steadily for quite some time, promising the consumer all sorts of health benefits. Thanks to the addition of well-known medicinal substances, the consumer does not only believe in the purchase of such foods, but also in their health.

What sounds plausible at first, however, often entails serious dangers. Especially because it blurs the line between food and medicines. „We are critical of the use of pharmaceutically active ingredients in foods. Such blurring between medicine and food can not be in the interests of consumer protection“, explains Professor Michael Habs, Managing Director of Schwabe in Karlsruhe. He cites the following reasons for his concerns:

- Medicines are subject to very strict legal requirements for quality, efficacy and safety, food not.

- A medicine must be taken regularly to work in a certain scientifically proven dosage. With food, a comparably high dosage can cause problems.

- Highly developed technology is needed for the production of modern herbal medicines, because, for example, in Ginkgo biloba, there are potentially harmful substances in addition to beneficial substances. They have to be removed professionally.

The nonprofit committee Research Natural Medicine e. V. (KFN) therefore welcomes the recent decision of the Federal Court of Justice. The judgment gives the consumer the necessary clarity while taking into account the quality of modern herbal medicines. (Pm)