Jessica Arnaly, Senior Marketing & Business Development Manager at Balchem Human Nutrition & Health As Thailand’s health and wellness market continues to expand, growing consumer demand for active ageing, mobility…

Jessica Arnaly, Senior Marketing & Business Development Manager at Balchem Human Nutrition & Health

As Thailand’s health and wellness market continues to expand, growing consumer demand for active ageing, mobility support, and beauty-from-within solutions is creating new opportunities for science-backed nutritional ingredients. Against this backdrop, the recent Thailand Food and Drug Administration (FDA) approval of OptiMSM marks a significant milestone for global ingredient supplier Balchem Human Nutrition & Health as it strengthens its presence in the fast-growing Southeast Asian market. The approval is expected to accelerate innovation across dietary supplements and functional nutrition categories, particularly as Thailand’s ageing population increasingly prioritises preventive health and wellness solutions.

In this interview with NUFFOODS Spectrum, Jessica Arnaly, Senior Marketing & Business Development Manager at Balchem Human Nutrition & Health, discusses the strategic importance of Thailand within the company’s broader APAC growth roadmap, evolving consumer trends shaping joint health and beauty nutrition, and the clinical science supporting OptiMSM. She also highlights how Balchem’s collaboration with Rama Production Co. is expected to support local manufacturers and brands, while enabling faster product innovation across supplements, functional foods, and beverages in the Thai market.

What strategic importance does Thailand hold for Balchem’s OptiMSM expansion, and how does this approval fit into your broader APAC growth roadmap?

Thailand is a particularly strategic and exciting market for Balchem’s OptiMSM expansion, given its scale, economic foundation and strong consumer momentum in preventive health and wellness. With a population of around 71.7 million people and a GDP exceeding $526 billion,[1] the country is one of Southeast Asia’s largest and most established consumer markets.

What really stands out, though, is how consumer behaviour is evolving. As disposable incomes rise, people in Thailand are placing greater emphasis on healthy ageing, active lifestyles and overall wellbeing, and they’re willing to invest in high-quality, effective solutions to support these goals. That creates a strong opportunity for OptiMSM, our premium methylsulfonylmethane (MSM) ingredient for joint and muscle health solutions, as well as beauty-from-within developments. Its approval for supplement use from the Thailand Food and Drug Administration (FDA) allows us to better serve our partners in the region and respond to growing consumer demands.

With Thailand’s rapidly ageing population, how do you see consumer demand evolving for joint health and beauty-from-within products in the coming years?

Thailand’s rapidly ageing population is clearly reshaping consumer priorities, driven by the desire not to simply “age gracefully” but to stay active, agile and confident for as long as possible. In this context, mobility is becoming foundational, with more consumers taking a proactive approach to joint health. Market data reflects this momentum: the Thai bone & joint health ingredient market is projected to grow from $231.73 Million in 2025 to $515 Million by 2035, with a CAGR of 8.3 per cent during the forecast period.[2] Here, while supplements still dominate, functional foods are also gaining traction as individuals look for health benefits that can be built seamlessly into their daily diets.[3]

On the beauty side, Thailand sits right at the heart of APAC’s “beauty-from-within” boom, where shoppers increasingly connect nutrition with appearance. Nearly 1 in 4 consumers in Asia purchased food and beverage solutions to improve physical appearance and beauty in the last year.[4] In the broad beauty realm, skincare remains the powerhouse category, making up about half of Thailand’s beauty market value.[5] What we’re seeing here is a change in how people choose products. There’s a shift toward science-led efficacy and ingredient awareness, with social media playing a big role. In Southeast Asia, #niacinamide videos on TikTok have gained over 4.7 billion views, while #salicylicacid has exceeded 1.8 billion views, demonstrating massive consumer interest in these nutrients.[6] The winners will be brands that develop formulas delivering targeted, science-backed, measurable benefits with real efficacy.

OptiMSM is positioned as a science-backed ingredient; could you elaborate on the clinical evidence supporting its benefits for joint health, skin, and overall active ageing?

OptiMSM is a multi-functional ingredient and there is a growing body of evidence to demonstrate its health benefits. MSM is a source of organic sulfur, which acts as a key component of the building blocks of healthy cartilage, ensuring proper structure and function.[7] The ingredient has been studied in healthy adults with mild knee pain, showing that just two grams per day can significantly reduce discomfort.[8] More recently, research highlighted its potential for post-exercise recovery, demonstrating that MSM supplementation modulated the expression of exercise recovery markers, including those associated with inflammation, oxidative stress, and muscle recovery.[9] As more consumers across all age groups turn to physical activity to support long-term health, this makes OptiMSM particularly relevant for active ageing.

What’s less widely recognised, but equally compelling, is its potential in the beauty space. Sulfur gives our skin the critical nutrition it needs to stay healthy,[10] working in two ways: it provides building blocks our skin relies on and acts as a key player in our body’s antioxidant defence system.[11] Evidence also shows that MSM can be a perfect partner for collagen, enhancing its impact on skin after only 12 weeks of use.[12]

How will the collaboration with Rama Production Co. help accelerate the adoption of OptiMSM among local manufacturers and brands in Thailand?

Rama Production Co. is a long-standing distributor partner of Balchem and has consistently provided strong technical, commercial and market-facing support across the APAC region. Its established presence in Thailand, combined with deep local market knowledge and long-term relationships with manufacturers and brand owners, plays a significant role in accelerating the adoption of new, science-backed ingredients such as OptiMSM.

Through this collaboration, we’re able to pair OptiMSM’s strong scientific and quality credentials with Rama’s on-the-ground expertise, helping local customers better understand the ingredient’s regulatory status, formulation flexibility, and application potential across categories including joint health, beauty-from-within and active ageing supplements. Just as importantly, this partnership expands the Balchem Minerals & Nutrients portfolio available in Thailand, giving Rama – and its customers – more tools to innovate.

What opportunities do you see for product innovation in Thailand following this FDA approval, particularly across categories like functional foods, beverages, and dietary supplements?

The immediate opportunity sits within dietary supplements, in line with the FDA approval we’ve just received. With regulatory clarity in place, manufacturers can move faster to develop targeted formats – whether that’s capsules, powders or stick packs. What’s particularly exciting is the potential to create multi-benefit products targeting mobility, muscle recovery and beauty into one proposition.

With OptiMSM now approved, brands have a strong, science-backed ingredient they can confidently build on, accelerating both innovation and speed-to-market across different health categories and generations.

Are there any regulatory or formulation challenges brands should be aware of when incorporating OptiMSM into products for the Thai market?

At this time, there are no notable regulatory or formulation challenges specific to  OptiMSM, so it can already be incorporated into products for the Thai market when used within the approved guidelines. Now that the ingredient has been granted approval from the Thailand FDA, manufacturers should have clarity and confidence around its use in dietary supplement formulations. As with any ingredient, brands should follow local regulatory requirements and standard formulation best practices, but OptiMSM offers a straightforward pathway for inclusion across a wide range of applications.

[1] World Bank Group, Thailand. Available at: Thailand | Data

[2] Market Research Future, Thailand Bone Joint Health Ingredients Market, 2026.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Innova Market Trends Survey 2025.

[5] In-cosmetics connect, Thai Beauty (T-Beauty) – A winning strategy for the global market, 2025.

[6] TikTok, 2024.

[7]  Debbi EM, et al., Efficacy of methylsulfonylmethane supplementation on osteoarthritis of the knee: a randomized controlled study. BMC Complement Altern Med. 2011; 11:50. doi: 10.1186/1472-6882-11-50. 

[8] Toguchi A, et al., Methylsulfonylmethane Improves Knee Quality of Life in Participants with Mild Knee Pain: A Randomized, Double-Blind, Placebo-Controlled Trial, Nutrients, 15, 2995, (2023).

[9] McFarlin, B. K., et al. (2025). Using the Rise and Fall of Oxidative Stress and Inflammation Post-Exercise to Evaluate the Effect of Methylsulfonylmethane Supplementation on Immune Response mRNA. Nutrients, 17(11), 1761.

[10]  Institute of Medicine, 2005. Dietary Reference Intakes for Water, Potassium, Sodium, Chloride, and Sulfate. 

[11] Ibid.

[12]  Pogačnik T, et al., The effect of a 12-week dietary intake of food supplements containing collagen and MSM on dermis density and other skin parameters: A double-blind, placebo-controlled, randomised four-way study comparing the efficacy of three test products, Journal of Functional Foods, 110(4):105838. DOI:10.1016/j.jff.2023.105838

Shraddha Warde

shraddha.warde@mmactiv.com