Driven by social media and a growing fitness culture, Morocco’s nutritional supplement market is expanding rapidly. But behind the industry’s growth lie concerns over counterfeit products, smuggling, misleading claims, and a regulatory framework struggling to keep pace.
A glossy protein tub promising rapid results and the perfect physique, this is how the story begins. But beneath the polished packaging lies a far more complex reality. Once reserved for athletes and gym-goers, sports nutrition supplements have become the cornerstone of a fast-growing market where genuine brands compete with counterfeit products, and scientific advice is increasingly drowned out by misleading advertising. Caught between consumers chasing quick results and a market evolving faster than regulation, one fundamental question remains: who is protecting consumers from a business where commercial interests increasingly collide with public health?
Neatly arranged shelves lined with tubs and pouches of every size, covered in foreign-language labels and brightly lit to showcase every detail, this is the typical scene inside Morocco’s sports supplement stores. Customers browse confidently. Most are young. One asks for a specific protein powder, another examines a creatine container, while a third quietly compares products before making a purchase. According to Mohamed Blanchit, a bodybuilding coach and former Moroccan champion, protein remains an essential supplement for muscle development. « In sports, especially bodybuilding, protein is necessary for building muscle » he told TelSport , adding that athletes also commonly use vitamins, minerals and, increasingly, creatine. « Creatine is currently one of the most widely used supplements among both men and women » he said.
Getting an inside view of the industry, however, proved less straightforward. A distributor working for a company specializing in nutritional supplements initially declined to speak with TelSport . Reserved and reluctant to discuss a sector where scrutiny is growing, he eventually agreed to speak on condition of anonymity. Having worked in the industry for more than a decade, he said the products his company markets are imported legally from well-known manufacturers in the United States, Germany and the United Kingdom. But, he added, a significant share of the market follows a different path. Some supplements, he said, enter Morocco through smuggling networks or unregulated digital platforms, allowing products of unknown origin, or those failing to meet quality standards, to circulate freely. As a result, consumers are often unable to distinguish between legally approved products and those operating entirely outside the regulatory framework.
Chasing the perfect physique
Sports supplements are no longer aimed solely at professional athletes. In recent years, they have evolved into a rapidly expanding market fueled by gyms and social media alike, despite persistent regulatory disorder. Abdelhakim Tarzani, a specialist in physical conditioning and natural massage therapy, said supplement consumption has become increasingly widespread. « Today, nutritional supplements are consumed by everyone, not only professional athletes » he told TelSport. This shift coincides with the rapid spread of fitness centers across Moroccan cities and the powerful influence of social media, which has helped turn bodybuilding into a mainstream lifestyle trend. Reliable official figures remain unavailable, but industry estimates suggest Morocco’s supplement market reached around MAD 900 million in 2023. Other estimates place its value between MAD 2 billion and MAD 3 billion, reflecting the difficulty of measuring activity in a largely informal sector.
The market’s rapid growth has also raised concerns from within the industry itself. Habib Saber, a Moroccan national and international bodybuilding champion known as « Pazado » said some insiders have begun exposing what they describe as hidden realities. According to Saber, Morocco’s supplement market is effectively controlled by just three or four major companies. « This monopoly is reflected directly in prices, » he told TelSport. He pointed to creatine as an example: while it typically sells abroad for around €10, consumers in Morocco may pay approximately €35. « The price difference is enormous » he said.
From consumption to experience
Adam, 31, says he uses nutritional supplements « but not excessively or randomly ». « The main problem is that this sector in Morocco is still insufficiently regulated » he told TelSport. He added that consumers cannot always verify whether products are authentic or legally imported and warned that many people consume supplements without seeking medical advice, exposing themselves to potential health risks.
For Mehdi Abbad, a civil society activist involved in bodybuilding, the issue extends beyond ingredients to the way products are handled throughout the supply chain. He cited cases where supplements showing signs of quality deterioration, such as clumped powder, are formally withdrawn from customers but not destroyed. « Instead, they are reintroduced into the market through other channels » he said. These products may later be sold at discounted prices to gyms or retailers, where they are used to prepare shakes or recipes, concealing their defects from consumers. Abbad also noted that supplements approaching their expiration dates often continue to be sold at full price, unlike practices commonly seen in foreign markets.
Tarzani, meanwhile, warned that many consumers rely solely on hearsay when deciding which supplements to take. « Many people now consume these products based only on what they hear, without any medical supervision » he said. According to him, many users combine several supplements simultaneously without understanding appropriate dosages or whether their bodies actually need them. Others, however, follow a more scientific approach by undergoing medical testing before determining which supplements, if any, they require. Blanchit likewise stressed that supplements should never be taken randomly. Instead, he said, consumers should undergo medical tests to determine what their bodies need, and what they should avoid. This unregulated consumption is driven not only by weak oversight and limited public awareness but also by the nature of online advertising, which has increasingly become consumers’ primary source of information.
When the screen becomes a marketplace
Search for nutritional supplements on social media, and advertisements appear almost instantly: « The strongest offers are still available » « Limited quantities » « Guaranteed results in just weeks » Alongside sponsored promotions, many brands advertise their products as certified by Morocco’s National Office for Food Safety (ONSSA), prominently displaying the agency’s logo on packaging to inspire consumer confidence.
Official information provided by ONSSA to TelSport states that supplement registration is governed by Joint Circular No. 834, issued on November 14, 2023, by the Ministry of Health and Social Protection and the Ministry of Agriculture, Maritime Fisheries, Rural Development and Water and Forests. The circular regulates food products and beverages intended for special nutritional purposes. Under these rules, nutritional supplements must obtain mandatory prior registration with the Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products before entering the market. Applications are reviewed by a technical committee composed of representatives from both the health sector and ONSSA. Approved products receive a registration certificate valid for five years. According to the same official data, manufacturing facilities must also obtain a health authorization from ONSSA under Law No. 28.07 on food safety after meeting requirements related to hygiene, traceability and product recall procedures. Locally manufactured products must display both the agency’s registration number and ONSSA’s health approval number, while imported products must include their registration number along with the importer’s name and address.
Yet behind this regulatory framework, not every sales channel operates equally. Some social media pages advertise supplements using nothing more than a phone number or WhatsApp contact. Others invest in digital marketing while openly displaying their store address and business identity, giving consumers at least some means of verifying who they are dealing with. To better understand how these products are marketed online, TelSport contacted one seller. The conversation initially seemed routine. The vendor enthusiastically promoted a complete supplement package and detailed its ingredients while attempting to convince the reporter of its effectiveness. The call ended abruptly, however, as soon as he was asked to identify himself or provide an interview.
The Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products says it has identified numerous irregularities in the sector, including the sale of unlicensed products that bypass registration and inspection procedures, misleading marketing claims unsupported by scientific evidence, insufficient transparency regarding ingredients, and widespread informal imports, particularly through digital platforms and social media. Blanchit believes supplements from approved manufacturers are generally safe but cautions consumers against purchasing products sold through platforms such as Facebook and Instagram.
Abbad, meanwhile, pointed to what he described as a structural weakness in the approval process. « Authorization is often granted based on an initial sample » he said. « Subsequent shipments are not necessarily subjected to the same level of inspection ». That, he warned, creates opportunities for manufacturers to alter product formulations after obtaining approval without effective monitoring to ensure continued compliance. Inside gyms, the commercial dimension is equally apparent. According to Tarzani, fitness centers have increasingly become retail outlets. « Gyms now sell these products as a commercial activity rather than providing genuine health guidance or scientific advice to consumers » he said.
Dr. Aziz Kahyoush, an expert in physical conditioning and sports nutrition, warned that supplements entering Morocco without authorization pose serious risks. He explained that many arrive through online shopping platforms or smuggling networks before being sold in unlicensed stores or informal markets, without any guarantees regarding their origin or composition. Kahyoush cautioned that consumers, especially athletes, often purchase supplements without knowing what they actually contain. « The information printed on the packaging does not necessarily reflect the true ingredients » he said. Some products, he warned, may contain prohibited substances, including testosterone derivatives or anabolic agents, potentially causing serious health complications or leaving athletes facing anti-doping violations without realizing it.
These concerns are echoed by the Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products, which said its surveillance activities have detected undeclared or prohibited substances in several sports supplements. According to the agency, these ingredients can pose significant health risks, particularly when consumed excessively or without medical supervision. Abbad also highlighted the absence of laboratories capable of independently verifying whether supplement contents match the information printed on their labels. « Consumers have no way of knowing whether the declared percentages are accurate » he said. He warned that this gap leaves room for manipulation, allowing manufacturers to reduce levels of key ingredients, such as protein, without changing the label, raising serious concerns about both product quality and consumer trust.
Fraud allegations meet industry pushback
The debate has moved beyond the quality or origin of nutritional supplements. It now centers on the « truth » itself: who is selling what, at what price, and for whose benefit? The controversy surfaced prominently on social media after Moroccan influencer Achraf published a series of statements that sparked widespread discussion within the industry.
In a widely shared video, he alleged that illegal practices were endangering consumers, accusing several retailers and shop owners of marketing smuggled or counterfeit products as genuine supplements. According to him, some products sold as creatine or protein are, in reality, nothing more than low-cost mixtures flavored with artificial additives. His criticism did not stop there. Achraf also claimed that even authentic products are subject to excessive markups, alleging that profit margins can reach as high as 300%. As an example, he cited a protein supplement that sells for no more than €13 in Europe but is offered in Morocco for between MAD 1,200 and MAD 1,300.
His claims, which resonated with many followers, were quickly challenged by industry insiders. The distributor (revendeur) interviewed by TelSport dismissed such statements as far from impartial, arguing that they reflected an attempt to « gain a foothold in the sector ». The distributor insisted that the products his company sells come from reputable manufacturers and are imported legally, adding that claims of exorbitant profits are « simply untrue. »
Between these competing narratives, a more complex picture emerges. On one side are allegations of fraud, smuggling, and inflated profit margins; on the other, a defense of what is described as a structured and legitimate market. Caught in the middle are consumers faced with conflicting accounts. Among the practices generating the greatest controversy, according to bodybuilding champion Habib Saber, is the lack of credibility within the industry, particularly allegations that expiration dates are altered.
The national and international champion said that, according to widespread accounts within the sector, such practices are not limited to small retailers but may also involve major market players. Products with only a month or a few months remaining before expiry are allegedly relabeled to extend their shelf life by a year or more. Saber also claimed that supplements approaching their expiration date are often not destroyed, as they should be, but instead re-enter the market through indirect channels. They are reportedly sold at discounted prices to certain athletes or intermediaries, who then resell them. « If these practices are true » he said, they reveal deep structural problems within the sector. He called for the creation of dedicated inspection committees to monitor the market from production to distribution in order to improve transparency and better protect consumers.
From punishment to market regulation
According to Mehdi Abbad, the persistence of these irregularities stems largely from weak enforcement mechanisms. « The current penalties are simply not severe enough to deter these practices » he argued, allowing them to continue unchecked. Abbad believes the solution lies in establishing a permanent monitoring system that goes beyond issuing licenses. It should include regular and unannounced inspections of products, alongside tougher sanctions against those found in violation.
In response to TelSport , the Moroccan Agency for Medicines and Health Products said that whenever unregistered nutritional supplements are found on the market or sold online, it refers the matter to the Public Prosecutor’s Office, submitting supporting evidence so that investigations can be opened and legal proceedings initiated against those responsible. The agency also issues public awareness campaigns alongside these legal measures.
Dr. Aziz Kahyoush, former physical trainer for FUS Rabat, likewise called for stronger state oversight while encouraging greater involvement from stakeholders across the sports sector. He argued that the first step should be making licensing mandatory for stores selling nutritional supplements, noting that a significant proportion currently operate outside any legal framework. Kahyoush also advocated requiring vendors to obtain specialized licenses and increasing routine inspections to verify both the origin and composition of supplements, as well as ensuring they carry the necessary authorizations; particularly from Morocco’s National Office for Food Safety (ONSSA). Such measures, he argued, would help curb the spread of products of unknown origin, following the example of countries with stricter regulatory systems.
Parliament sounds the alarm over an unregulated market
The issue has moved beyond professional circles and into the legislature. Members of both the governing majority and the opposition have submitted parliamentary questions to the Ministry of Health and Social Protection regarding the growing sale of medicines and nutritional supplements through digital platforms. The questions were raised by MPs Hanan Atrakin, Idriss Sentissi, and Abdelkader Taher, all expressing concern over the rapid expansion of online sales. The lawmakers warned that the unchecked promotion of products of unknown origin, coupled with false and misleading therapeutic claims, has led to serious health complications and undermined public confidence in the healthcare system.
They also raised concerns over the transformation of numerous social media pages into what they described as « digital pharmacies », marketing products without legal authorization or health oversight. The MPs questioned the relevant authorities about the lack of effective monitoring, the continued existence of these illegal practices, and the failure to enforce deterrent penalties and other measures capable of curbing what they described as digital chaos.
Speaking to TelSport, Amine Bouzoubaa, a pharmacist and researcher in pharmaceutical policy, argued that the problem extends far beyond the market’s outward appearance and reaches its legal and regulatory foundations. According to Bouzoubaa, the ambiguous legal status of nutritional supplements, positioned somewhere between food and medicine, creates a complex regulatory challenge, particularly when products are marketed with therapeutic claims or purported health benefits. He argued that the debate is not simply about the absence of legislation specifically governing nutritional supplements, but also about whether the provisions of Morocco’s Code of Medicines and Pharmacy, particularly Law No. 17.04, should apply to certain products whose composition or effects may give them therapeutic functions.
« The nutritional supplement market in Morocco has continued to expand within a legal vacuum that has persisted for years » Bouzoubaa said, adding that the Ministry of Health bears primary responsibility for the situation. Pharmacists and other professionals, he noted, have repeatedly warned authorities, through official correspondence and meetings, about the risks posed by the current framework, yet no comprehensive regulatory law has been enacted. According to Bouzoubaa, the problem extends beyond the absence of legislation to the lack of an integrated regulatory system. Although a draft law was prepared nearly five years ago, he said, it has never been adopted and remains, in his words, « frozen » within the ministry.
That view, however, is rejected by a distributor working for one of the sector’s companies. In his view, the core problem lies neither with legal retailers nor with those marketing these products, but rather with weak enforcement that has allowed smuggled goods to flourish. He criticized proposals to restrict supplement sales exclusively to pharmacies. Such a move, he argued, « serves the interests of one professional group more than it addresses the market’s real shortcomings ». The issue, he added, « is not legally operating stores selling supplements of known origin with the proper documentation, but those importing products illegally and selling them entirely outside any form of oversight ».
Meanwhile, a legislative proposal has been introduced to amend Law No. 17.04, Morocco’s Code of Medicines and Pharmacy, by bringing supplements with pharmacological effects under the authority of pharmacists and requiring professional consultation before their sale. The proposal, however, faces opposition from some industry professionals, who argue that the real problem lies in smuggling and inadequate enforcement rather than the retail channel itself.
Written in Arabic by Khadija Alimoussa (TelSport), edited in English by Amina Kadiri
