SEPTEMBER EXTRA
Past Editions—Need to Know Archives
New California age-restriction law will require retailers to identify covered dietary supplements and verify age of purchasers
On September 28, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed into law AB 2030, prohibiting the sale of dietary supplements for weight loss or muscle building to consumers under 18 years of age. The law will impose new responsibilities on retailers and sellers to identify products that fall within its scope and implement age-verification procedures for their sale. It will take effect January 1, 2027.
CRN issued a statement on Tuesday warning California consumers that the new law will limit access to safe and beneficial supplements and chill free speech to provide truthful information about the these products.
The new law covers any OTC medication or any dietary supplement that is “labeled, marketed, or otherwise represented” for weight loss or muscle building. For retailers, one of the first challenges will be determining which products are covered. The law does not establish a product list.
Importantly, that analysis may include not only a manufacturer's labeling and marketing but also how a retailer presents the product. A court may consider whether a retailer categorizes or tags a product for weight loss or muscle building, groups it with similar products in a store or online, or otherwise represents it for those purposes.
Does AB 2030 Require Retailers to Lock Up Covered Products?
No. The law permits retailers to limit physical access to covered products, but it does not require them to do so.
That does not eliminate the retailer's compliance obligations. For in-person sales, a retailer must request valid identification whenever it cannot reasonably determine that a person attempting to purchase a covered product appears to be at least 18 years old.
Online and delivery sellers face additional requirements. They must either obtain the purchaser's full name, birth date, and residential address and verify that information using a qualifying third-party database; or use a delivery method requiring an adult age 18 or older to sign for the package and present government-issued photo identification.
Violations are subject to civil penalties of up to $500 per violation, and the Attorney General, county counsel, or a city attorney may seek enforcement.
The practical issue for retailers, therefore, extends beyond whether products are physically restricted. Retailers will need a process for identifying covered products, applying the appropriate age-verification requirements, and implementing those requirements across in-store and online sales channels.
Determining Which Products Are Covered May Be Complicated
AB 2030 does not provide retailers with a definitive list of products that are subject to the law. Unlike a similar law in New York, the California law does not expressly exempt fiber or protein from the age restrictions. Instead, whether a particular product falls within its scope may depend on several factors.
In determining whether a supplement is marketed or represented for weight loss or muscle building, a court may consider:
- whether the product contains certain ingredients, including creatine, green tea extract, raspberry ketone, garcinia cambogia, or green coffee bean extract;
- claims or images suggesting that the product affects body weight, fat, appetite, metabolism, muscle, or strength;
- whether the product’s labeling or marketing bears statements or images that express or imply that the product will help modify, maintain, or reduce body weight, fat, appetite, overall metabolism, or the process by which nutrients are metabolized or help maintain or increase muscle or strength.
- how the product or its ingredients are otherwise represented; and
- how the retailer itself categorizes, tags, displays, advertises, or groups the product, including whether it is placed with other weight-loss or muscle-building products.
As a result, determining which products are covered may require more than reviewing the product label. Retailers may need to evaluate product claims, digital categorization, merchandising, shelf placement, advertising, and other representations across their sales channels.
CRN Worked Without Success to Prevent the New Law's Passage
CRN worked closely with our Sacramento team, members, and industry partners at every stage of the legislative process. The governor’s decision comes despite our sustained advocacy to oppose the legislation’s sweeping restrictions and instead advance a more targeted, science-based alternative. CRN met with lawmakers, submitted opposition letters and in-person statements, urged Governor Newsom to veto the bill, and mobilized members and other industry stakeholders to contact the Governor’s office.
CRN is evaluating next steps and will work with the Board of Directors to assess the new law, its implications, and our future engagement.
New York enacted a similar law in 2023, and CRN has been involved in active litigation to halt enforcement of that law since then. That case is currently pending before the U.S. Supreme Court on CRN’s petition that it consider the case and the potential violations of the First Amendment presented by the restrictions on retailers. See coverage of CRN’s ongoing lawsuit over the New York law here.
For more information about the new California law, contact Steve Mister at CRN at smister@crnusa.org.