Starting Jan. 1, 2027, California retailers will be barred from selling weight-loss or muscle-building supplements to anyone under 18 and will be required to check identification for any customer whose age is not obviously apparent.
The rule comes from Assembly Bill 2030, written by Assemblymember Josh Lowenthal (D-Long Beach) and signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom on Sept. 28. The New York Post reported Monday that the law’s reach extends to creatine products marketed for building muscle.
The statute covers any supplement marketed or represented as helping someone lose weight or build muscle. A legal analysis of the law lists factors courts can weigh in borderline cases, naming creatine, green tea extract, raspberry ketone, garcinia cambogia, and green coffee bean extract as examples. Label claims about appetite, metabolism, or strength count toward coverage, as does where a retailer physically shelves the product.
Lowenthal has linked the bill to social media marketing aimed at teens, arguing that children are being “pushed to buy untested supplements promising dramatic effects on their bodies,” and citing what he called dangerous “looksmaxxing” trends online.
Industry groups say the law sweeps too broadly. The Consumer Healthcare Products Association and the Council for Responsible Nutrition both objected to the criteria used to define covered products. Steve Mister of the nutrition council said the better approach was to “identify the actual risk and address it directly,” and his group warned in a veto request that the standard as written could capture fiber, protein, multivitamins, and ordinary wellness products.
The American Herbal Products Association made a similar argument, noting that protein, vitamin D, and creatine all relate to muscle development or metabolism in some way — meaning products nobody would call diet pills could be swept in based on ingredients alone.
Enforcement and penalties
Retailers who violate the law face a $500 penalty per violation. The state attorney general can sue to enforce it, as can county counsels and city attorneys, any of whom may seek a court order halting sales. Online retailers face a separate compliance path: before shipping into California, they must verify a buyer’s name, birthdate, and address against government-sourced data, or require a delivery method that mandates an adult signature.
Newsom has signed other measures restricting what minors can buy or use in the state, including a 2024 law limiting smartphone use in public schools. In 2024 he also signed legislation barring local governments from requiring photo identification to vote.
Reaction on the ground
Not everyone in the industry sees a problem to solve. Dean Riley, a fitness enthusiast in Bakersfield, told Eyewitness News that teenagers aren’t the ones buying these products in large numbers. “Ain’t no teenage kids coming to the vitamin store or GNC,” he said. Lucia Clevenger, who owns a supplement shop in the city, said she sees the issue as ultimately a parenting question.
A second state, a legal fight already underway
California is not the first state to pass this kind of restriction. New York enacted a similar law in 2023, which took effect in April 2024. The Council for Responsible Nutrition has since asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review New York’s law on First Amendment grounds, a case that could shape how far California’s own law can reach once it takes effect.
Add comment