Supplement posts by creators in Germany: the health claim rules
In Germany, a creator’s post about your supplement or protein powder may only make health claims the EU has authorised, in their meaning. Weight-loss figures, “detox” and disease stories are out. And a German court has held the brand liable for its creators’ Instagram claims, even ones it never saw.
The rules in short
- Influencer posts are covered. The federal government told the Bundestag in April 2026 that the EU rules on health claims also apply to influencers on social media.
- Only authorised health claims. A claim linking a food to health is banned unless it is on the EU list, such as “Vitamin C trägt zu einer normalen Funktion des Immunsystems bei”. “Stärkt das Immunsystem” goes beyond it.
- Never a disease claim. No food may claim to prevent, treat or cure a disease, in advertising too.
- No weight-loss figures, no doctor recommendations. Claims about how fast or how much weight is lost, and references to an individual doctor’s recommendation, are always forbidden.
- The brand is liable. Under § 8 (2) UWG, a court treated creators as the brand’s agents and held the brand responsible for their posts, even without its knowledge.
Which rules apply
| Rule | What it says | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Health Claims Regulation (EC) No 1924/2006, Art. 1 (2) and Art. 10 (1) | Covers claims in commercial communications, including advertising, for food sold to consumers. Health claims are banned unless authorised and on the EU list. Pictures and indirect suggestions count as claims. | EUR-Lex |
| Health Claims Regulation, Art. 12 | Always forbidden: suggesting health suffers without the food, the rate or amount of weight loss, and references to recommendations by individual doctors or health professionals. | EUR-Lex |
| Food Information Regulation (EU) No 1169/2011, Art. 7 (3) and (4), with § 11 LFGB | Food information may not attribute preventing, treating or curing a human disease to a food, and this applies to advertising. Breaking § 11 LFGB can be punished with up to one year in prison or a fine (§ 59 LFGB). | EUR-Lex, § 11 LFGB |
| Food Supplements Ordinance (NemV), § 4 (4) | No advertising that claims or implies a balanced, varied diet generally can’t supply enough nutrients. | gesetze-im-internet.de |
| Act against Unfair Competition (UWG), § 3a and § 8 | Breaking the health claim rules is unfair competition. Competitors and associations can sue, and claims against an agent’s breach also lie against the business. | § 8 UWG |
What a creator may say
Authorised claims are in the EU register of health claims (Regulation (EU) No 432/2012), each with conditions of use, usually a minimum amount of the nutrient. Wording that means the same to consumers is allowed, but not wording that goes further. Claims for plant ingredients (botanicals) are still pending at EU level.
| Wording | Why |
|---|---|
| “Vitamin C trägt zu einer normalen Funktion des Immunsystems bei” | Authorised, if the product contains enough vitamin C. |
| “Proteine tragen zu einer Zunahme an Muskelmasse bei” | Authorised for protein, like maintaining muscle mass and normal bones. |
| “Kreatin erhöht die körperliche Leistung bei Schnellkrafttraining im Rahmen kurzzeitiger intensiver körperlicher Betätigung” | Authorised for creatine, in this form. |
| “stärkt das Immunsystem” | Goes beyond “contributes to the normal function”, as the consumer centres point out. |
| “knapp über 17 Kilo abgenommen, auch mithilfe der Produkte” | Amount of weight loss: forbidden by Art. 12. From the LG Itzehoe case. |
| “Heißhunger besiegt”, “abnehmen wie nebenbei” with a protein coffee | Weight-loss and satiety claims for protein aren’t authorised (LG Itzehoe). |
| “detox” | A health claim with no authorisation (LG Hagen). |
| A disease or fertility story, such as a period returning after taking the product | A disease-type claim. The LG Itzehoe court stopped this one. |
| “Mein Arzt empfiehlt …” | A reference to an individual doctor’s recommendation (Art. 12). |
| “Eine normale Ernährung reicht nicht aus” | Forbidden by § 4 (4) NemV. |
One more trap: the claim has to name the nutrient behind it. In the LG Itzehoe case, a product contained vitamin B6 and zinc, but the posts credited the product itself with balancing the cycle. The court found that unlawful because the substance wasn’t named.
The court cases
- 01
The brand answers for its creators (LG Itzehoe, 8 HKO 7/24, 2024)
foodwatch sued the maker of More Nutrition over Instagram videos by creators: lost weight “mithilfe der More-Produkte”, “Heißhunger besiegt Dank More”, a fertility story. The court ordered the company to stop, under §§ 3a and 8 UWG with Art. 10 (1) of the Health Claims Regulation. It held the creators were the company’s agents, so it was liable even for breaches committed without its knowledge and against its will, and that it couldn’t argue it was unable to check every post. Judgment (PDF).
- 02
“Detox” on an untagged photo (LG Hagen, 23 O 45/17, 2017)
An association whose members sell supplements obtained an injunction against an influencer over an Instagram photo with a drink called “detox delight”. The court held “detox” is a health claim, that none is authorised, and that the post was also hidden advertising. Decision.
We found no decision by a higher regional court on a creator’s own liability under the Health Claims Regulation. For medicines, the OLG Köln held in 2025 (6 U 118/24) that an influencer in a paid partnership is the company’s agent under § 8 (2) UWG.
What the food authorities found
Food control is a matter for the federal states. Baden-Württemberg’s state laboratory (CVUA Stuttgart) has looked at supplement advertising on social media more than once:
- Every influencer product was objected to. In its sampling campaigns, the objection rate for influencer products was 100%, each time including the social media advertising (May 2025). It also notes that with a paid partnership, the creator’s claims can be attributed to the food business.
- Shilajit: of 350 German-language ad posts it reviewed, more than half came from influencers, and about 85% of the posts with health claims were unlawful. No health claim is authorised for shilajit (April 2026).
- Most influencer claims fail. The consumer centres report that in a CVUA study of almost 5,000 posts by 38 supplement sellers, 39% of the claims were unlawful, and about 90% in influencer content.
In practice, the bigger risk for a brand is private enforcement. The Wettbewerbszentrale, competitors and consumer associations such as foodwatch send cease-and-desist letters and sue. The Wettbewerbszentrale says it makes no difference whether a weight-loss claim is on the product or in a third party’s testimonial.
Disclosure comes on top
A post with allowed claims still needs a label. A gifted product counts as consideration, so the caption should start with “Werbung” or “Anzeige”. The LG Hagen post was unlawful on both counts. Full details are in our guide to influencer disclosure in Germany.
What your brand should do
- 01
Send the authorised wording with the product
Give each creator the exact authorised claims for your product, in German, naming the nutrient (“Vitamin C trägt …”), and list what not to say: weight-loss figures, “detox”, “stärkt das Immunsystem”, disease stories, “mein Arzt empfiehlt”.
- 02
Treat seeded creators as your agents
The LG Itzehoe court applied § 8 (2) UWG because the creators promoted only that company’s products. A creator posting about the product you sent is in the same position.
- 03
Check what was said, not just whether they posted
Claims hide in voice-overs, “what I eat in a day” and before-and-after stories. Look at every post your product appears in, tagged or not.
- 04
Act fast and keep a record
Ask for a fix or removal when a post crosses the line, and note what you asked and when. A cease-and-desist letter usually comes first, and it can be addressed to your brand.
How Pozto helps
Pozto watches the creators you gifted on TikTok, Instagram Reels and YouTube Shorts and finds the posts that show your product, tagged or not. For each post you see the caption, and on Starter and up, every time your brand or product is said out loud, with the creator’s words and the second. That is where “seitdem habe ich keinen Heißhunger mehr” turns up.
Pozto doesn’t judge claims. It gives your team one list of every post to review. It also grades disclosure: in Settings, under “Disclosure rules”, set “Grade posts by the rules of” to Germany, and Pozto counts “Werbung” or “Anzeige” as clear only when it comes first. Start free with up to 10 creators, or see Pozto for supplement brands.
Questions
Do the EU health claim rules apply to influencers?
Yes. The federal government told the Bundestag in April 2026 that the strict EU rules on health claims for food must also be followed in influencers’ social media posts, and that the federal states’ authorities check this.
Can a creator say a supplement strengthens the immune system?
Not in those words. The authorised claim is that a nutrient such as vitamin C “trägt zu einer normalen Funktion des Immunsystems bei”. The consumer centres point out that this may not become “Stärkung des Immunsystems”.
Is the brand liable for what a creator says about its supplement?
It can be. In LG Itzehoe 8 HKO 7/24, the court treated creators as the company’s agents under § 8 (2) UWG and held it liable for their Instagram claims, even without its knowledge.
Can a creator share how much weight they lost?
No. Article 12 of the Health Claims Regulation forbids claims about the rate or amount of weight loss, and the Wettbewerbszentrale says it makes no difference whether they appear in a testimonial.
Is “detox” allowed?
No. In LG Hagen 23 O 45/17, the court held that “detox” is a health claim and that none is authorised.
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