Brazil: dietitians, jobs and the nutrition industry

Regulator / credentialing body

Conselho Federal de Nutricionistas (CFN) + regional councils (CRN)

Professional title

Nutricionista (CRN registration)

Title protection

Yes - regulated profession under Law 8.234/1991

Professional body

Associação Brasileira de Nutrição (ASBRAN)

Supplement regulation

ANVISA - food supplements framework (RDC 243/2018)

Region

Latin America

How the profession is regulated

Brazil regulates nutrition as a single profession: the nutricionista. Law 8.234 of 1991 defines the profession and its activities, and the Conselho Federal de Nutricionistas (CFN), with ten regional councils (CRN), registers practitioners, sets the code of ethics and supervises practice. To practise, graduates of a recognised bachelor's degree in nutrition, typically four years with supervised internships in clinical, collective and public health nutrition, must register with the CRN for their region. Nutrition technicians (técnicos em nutrição e dietética) are a separate, supervised category.

The Associação Brasileira de Nutrição (ASBRAN) is the national scientific and professional association, offering specialist titles and congresses. Brazil has one of the largest nutrition workforces in the world; we will add the CFN's current count here once we have read it on the council's own statistics page.

The health burden

WHO's Global Health Observatory estimates adult obesity in Brazil at 28.2% in 2022^[1]. Obesity and diabetes have risen quickly as diets shifted from traditional rice-and-beans meals towards ultra-processed foods. Food insecurity, which rose in recent years, coexists with overweight. Brazil's response to this double burden, especially its dietary guidelines and school feeding programme, is studied worldwide.

Strengths of the Brazilian market

• A large, regulated profession with a single clear title.
• A world-respected food guide. The Dietary Guidelines for the Brazilian Population (2014) introduced advice based on the degree of food processing and recommend avoiding ultra-processed foods, an approach adopted or adapted by many countries.
• The National School Feeding Programme (PNAE). One of the world's largest school meal programmes, which by law employs nutricionistas as technical leads and requires a share of food to come from family farming.
• A big domestic industry. Hypera Pharma, sports nutrition brands such as Growth Supplements and Integralmédica, herbal medicine maker Herbarium and pharmacy chains such as Raia Drogasil serve a very large market.
• Fitness culture. Brazil has one of the largest gym markets in the world, driving demand for sports nutrition.

Opportunities

For practitioners

Nutricionistas work in hospitals, the unified health system (SUS), school feeding, collective food service (unidades de alimentação e nutrição), sports, private practice, industry and research. Collective food service and school feeding are major employers by law. Private practice is strong in sports, aesthetics, weight management and maternal and child nutrition. The obesity and diabetes burden is increasing demand in primary care and specialist clinics.

For companies

Brazil is Latin America's largest supplement and sports nutrition market. Pharmacies, sports nutrition stores, supermarkets and online channels all matter. The 2018 regulatory reform created a clear category for food supplements, making the market more accessible to compliant international brands, but registration, labelling and tax rules are complex, so local partners are essential.

How food supplements are regulated

In 2018, ANVISA, the national health surveillance agency, created a dedicated regulatory framework for food supplements through RDC 243/2018 and associated normative instructions. It sets lists of permitted ingredients and their limits, permitted claims with evidence requirements, labelling rules and notification or registration procedures, depending on the product. Probiotics and enzymes have specific requirements. Before the reform, supplements were spread across several food categories, which caused confusion. Brazil also introduced new front-of-pack nutrition labelling, with a magnifying-glass symbol for high sugar, saturated fat and sodium, which applies to many foods.

Public health priorities

The Brazilian food guide, PNAE, front-of-pack labelling, policies against hunger such as the renewed Brazil Without Hunger plan, and primary care nutrition programmes in the SUS shape national nutrition policy. Ultra-processed food reduction is a recurring theme in research and policy debate.

Practical notes

For internationally trained nutrition professionals

Foreign degrees must be revalidated by a Brazilian public university (revalidação de diploma) before CRN registration, and Portuguese proficiency is needed. The process can be lengthy.

For companies entering Brazil

Classify the product under RDC 243/2018, check every ingredient and limit, use only permitted claims, prepare Portuguese labels with the new front-of-pack rules where applicable, and work with a Brazilian importer that holds the necessary ANVISA authorisation. Tax planning is a key part of pricing in Brazil.

Suppliers, manufacturers and retailers in Brazil

Notable companies headquartered in Brazil across supplements, medical nutrition, ingredients and retail. This is an information list, not an endorsement; companies can claim and expand their profile through a supplement company membership.

Events and trade shows

No major international nutrition trade show with confirmed dates is scheduled in Brazil right now. The nearest large events are on the worldwide events calendar, which lists dates checked on each organiser's site.

How Brazil fits the global picture

Worldwide, 2.6 billion adults were living with overweight in 2024, and 940 million of them with obesity^[2]. Diabetes affects 589 million adults aged 20 to 79^[3]. The global dietary supplements market was valued at US$209.5 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach US$431.7 billion by 2033^[4]. Those three numbers frame demand for dietitians and nutrition products in every country on the Global Hub.

More countries in Latin America

Mexico