Appetite suppressants based on the plant Garcinia cambogia, which can cause serious adverse health effects, can no longer be sold or imported into France, the government announced Friday, pending a European decision.
At the beginning of March, the French Agency for Food, Environmental and Occupational Health Safety (ANSES) recommended against consuming food supplements containing Garcinia cambogia, pointing out serious adverse effects associated with their consumption, particularly due to the presence of hydroxycitric acid.
France has informed the European Commission of the conclusions of this expert appraisal and of the need for measures at the European level, the Minister of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty and the Minister of the Economy, Finance, and Industrial and Digital Sovereignty indicated in a press release.
Pending a possible European decision, Annie Genevard and Eric Lombard have decided, in order to "protect consumers", to "suspend the introduction from a Member State of the European Union, the importation from a third country, and the placing on the national market of food supplements containing the plant Garcinia cambogia", via a decree dated April 15.
This measure, which takes effect immediately, "prohibits any disposal of stocks already present on the market, given the acute health risk identified."
Food business operators who have placed Garcinia cambogia-based food supplements on the market must withdraw or recall them.
"The ministry's inspection services will be required to carry out checks to verify the effectiveness of these measures," the ministers warned.
Although banned in medicines since 2012, the plant Garcinia cambogia – or Malabar tamarind – continued to be "offered in food supplements" for weight loss – some 340 are sold, mainly on the internet –, ANSES warned on March 5.
However, between 2009 and March 2024, 38 cases of adverse effects were reported in France: liver, psychiatric, digestive (pancreatitis), cardiac and muscular disorders, often serious.
Currently, European regulations do not prohibit the use of health claims ("weight control," "reduction of fat storage," "reduction of hunger," "control of blood sugar and cholesterol levels," etc.) put forward by manufacturers of Garcinia cambogia-based food supplements. These claims are currently being reviewed by the European Food Safety Agency (EFSA).
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