Informed Sport’s barcode-scanning app tackles banned substances in sports nutrition

23 Apr 2021 --- Informed Sport is launching an app that uses barcode scanning to help users find sports nutrition products tested for banned substances.

After years of development, the free app is available worldwide and informs users whether an item is one of the 3,900-plus products certified by Informed Sport.

“The Informed Sport app is unique in that it lists every individual lot or batch number of a certified product for users to confirm testing,” Robyn Keene, marketing communications manager of Informed Sport, tells NutritionInsight.

She continues that the app’s global outlook makes it stand out from others like NSF Certified for Sport’s offering.

Informed Sport is a global banned substance testing and certification program for sports nutrition products that certifies every batch of a product is tested before being released to market.

It tests products originating from more than 40 countries and allows users to filter by regional availability. Notably, Informed Sport-certified products are available for sale in 127 countries.Users can filter searches based on a host of aspects.

A host of features
A key feature of the app is the ability to search for certified products by scanning the Universal Product Code (UPC) or European Article Number (EAN) barcode found on the packaging. Users can scan the barcode of a product, and if the product is certified, it will populate the product page. 

“We knew the ability to search for a certified product via a simple search or barcode scan would be a valuable tool for athletes and nutrition practitioners who are often busy and on-the-go,” says Keene.

On the product page, app users can view more details about the product, confirm the batch or lot number to provide certainty they have a tested supplement and find links to purchase the product from brand or retail websites.  

In addition to filtering by regional availability, people using the product search tool can filter by brand name, performance goal, product formulation and product type.

Users can share certified product pages with others via email, text message or social media. Informed Sport says this is a useful tool for athletes who often consult with nutrition professionals before using supplements.

Technical challenges
Informed sports had been planning an app for several years. “We started the development of our new website in 2019, which ultimately was the backbone for the app,” explains Keene.

Data is now synced between the website and app, meaning that if a new product or batch is listed on the website, it is almost instantly reflected in the app too.

Keene says the biggest challenge was collecting the UPC and EAN barcode information. The team had nearly 4,000 different tested and certified products when considering all of the different aspects like flavor and size.

“Our team has been working on gathering this information from our certified brands for several months and has implemented a new process to capture this data at the beginning of a product’s certification process with Informed Sport going forward,” she adds. A key feature of the app is the ability to search for certified products by scanning the UPC or EAN barcode.

Sports nutrition products under scrutiny
The app targets athletes, drug-tested personnel and supplement users. “We recommend that athletes should not use a product unless they see the lot number listed on the app or website,” says Keene.

Informed Sport points out that as many as one in ten sports nutrition products potentially contain a prohibited or harmful substance.

Against that backdrop, finding safer products is vital for competitive athletes, military personnel and those who lead an active lifestyle supported by supplement use.

In November, a seven-year European Specialist Sports Nutrition Alliance investigation revealed 476 sports nutrition products to be in violation of EU law. 

Industry has also been weighing up whether the first-ever pan-European good manufacturing practice for sports nutrition will help enforce quality and weed out bad actors lacing products with doping analogs like steroids and stimulants.

By Katherine Durrell