Coverage: Feed Additives, Food Nutritional Supplements, Cosmetic Ingredients, Pharmaceutical Intermediates, Agricultural Inputs, and Basic Chemical Raw Materials

Reporting Period: October 9–15, 2026

Key Focus Areas: Policy · Supply and Demand · Industrial Supply Chains

This issue focuses on the industrial supply chains associated with betaine and its derivatives, betaine hydrochloride, L-carnitine, choline chloride, creatine monohydrate, sodium sarcosinate, methylamines, MTBE, ethylene oxide, and cationic etherifying agents.

Reporting Methodology: This report primarily covers events announced or occurring during the reporting period. It distinguishes between confirmed regulatory developments and corporate announcements, market price signals, and industry assessments that still require verification. For food, nutrition, feed, and agricultural products, only price trends are discussed in principle. For methylamines, MTBE, ethylene oxide, and raw materials related to cationic etherifying agents, publicly available benchmark quotations may be used for analysis. Unverified transaction prices, quotations, and capacity changes are not presented as established facts.

I. Key Highlights of the Week

The main developments this week are not limited to price movements across individual products. Regulatory requirements, innovations in nutritional product formats, and cost pass-through along the basic chemicals supply chain deserve particular attention.

1. Feed Additives: Monitor Product Approval Status and Scope of Application

Announcement No. 921 issued by China's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs concerns the approval of new feed additives, including betaine phosphate. However, this announcement was issued in 2025 and does not represent a new policy development this week. It should therefore be treated as an ongoing compliance and product market-access consideration rather than a new positive market catalyst.

Source: Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs of China

2. Cosmetic Ingredients: Follow Up on Revisions to Safety Standards

On October 8, China's National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) issued Announcement No. 99 of 2026 concerning the implementation of revisions to the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics. The revisions cover ingredient catalogues, limits for microorganisms and hazardous substances, testing methods, and other related requirements. Customers' formulation compliance, labeling, and raw material approval processes should be reviewed as a priority.

Source: Shanghai Municipal Medical Products Administration

3. Creatine Monohydrate: Expanding into Everyday Food Applications

On October 13, FoodNavigator reported that creatine is increasingly being incorporated into protein bars, functional foods, beverages, and other consumer products. For ingredient suppliers, opportunities may extend beyond traditional sports nutrition powders to include blended formulations, convenient packaging, and compatibility with food processing.

Source: FoodNavigator.com

4. Basic Chemicals: Rising Cost and Supply Risks for Methanol and MTBE

Public market information from early October indicates that domestic methanol prices strengthened amid relatively tight import supplies. MTBE was also supported by export deliveries, tight spot availability, and raw material costs. For methylamines and other methanol derivatives, businesses should assess the actual transmission of cost increases rather than assuming that finished-product prices will rise in direct proportion to raw material prices.

Source: Oilchem

Business assessment for the week: Priorities include reviewing cosmetic regulatory compliance, developing new creatine applications, and managing chemical raw material cost risks. For betaine, betaine hydrochloride, L-carnitine, choline chloride, sodium sarcosinate, and other products, market direction should continue to be validated through actual inquiries, orders, and supplier feedback. Scattered market reports alone are insufficient to determine overall supply and demand conditions.

II. News and Analysis by Product Category

2.1 Betaine Series: Feed, Food, Cosmetic, Pharmaceutical, and Agricultural Grades

Scope: Synthetic betaine, anhydrous betaine, and grades for different applications.

Publicly available information reviewed this week did not reveal any major new developments that could be confirmed as directly changing the supply and demand dynamics of these betaine grades. The following analysis is based on product applications and relevant regulatory information published this week; it does not represent confirmed changes in market transactions.

Recent regulatory developments relevant to cosmetics can be found in the NMPA announcement. The compliance status of betaine used in cosmetics must be assessed based on the specific substance, intended use, and product formulation. Different betaine-related products should not automatically be treated as the same ingredient.

Source: Shanghai Municipal Medical Products Administration

Price trend assessment: There is insufficient publicly available, comparable transaction data to establish a general upward or downward trend this week. On the procurement side, it is advisable to verify actual transaction trends by purity, content, packaging, and application grade.

2.2 Betaine Hydrochloride (Betaine HCl)

No major new regulatory developments or industry announcements directly affecting product supply and demand could be confirmed from this week's search.

Market developments:Monitor purchasing cycles among feed manufacturers, premix producers, and distributors, as well as formulation demand for different animal diets.

Price trend:There is insufficient public evidence to determine an overall market direction this week. Verify current producer quotations, order schedules, and delivery times.

Regulatory considerations:Betaine hydrochloride must be distinguished from other substances, such as betaine phosphate. Similar names do not imply identical registration status, permitted applications, or labeling requirements.

Business recommendations:Clearly specify active content, impurity limits, packaging, delivery time, and target-market requirements when quoting. Avoid comparing suppliers solely on a per-tonne price basis.

2.3 L-Carnitine

No major newly approved products, regulatory changes, or supply disruptions could be confirmed from publicly available information this week.

Market developments:Focus on formulation development in sports nutrition and weight-management products, as well as changes in demand across food supplement and other application channels.

Price trend:There is insufficient verifiable data to establish a consistent market trend for the week; no definitive upward or downward assessment is made.

Regulatory considerations:Regulatory boundaries between food supplements, conventional foods, and medicines vary by market. The same promotional claims and product specifications should not be applied indiscriminately across these categories.

Business recommendations:Sales materials should emphasize verified quality parameters, specification stability, batch consistency, and complete technical documentation. Avoid unsubstantiated weight-loss or therapeutic claims when promoting product benefits.

2.4 Choline Chloride

Industry quotation pages available this week indicate continued price differences among suppliers offering different concentrations and carrier types. A quotation for one specification cannot represent the entire choline chloride market.

Source: ECHEMI

Market developments:Feed-grade choline chloride should be assessed by concentration, carrier type, and delivery region. Quotations for different specifications should not be compared directly.

Price trend:No definitive overall market direction is established at this stage. Recent valid supplier quotations and actual transactions should be used for verification.

Regulatory considerations:Check feed additive authorization, labeling requirements, and quality standards in the target country.

Business recommendations:Compare quotations, carrier types, concentrations, packaging, and delivery terms in a single table to prevent nominal unit prices from distorting procurement decisions.

2.5 Creatine Monohydrate

One notable consumer-market development this week is the expansion of creatine into protein bars and other functional food formats. FoodNavigator reported this product innovation trend on October 13.

Source: FoodNavigator.com

Market developments:Creatine is no longer limited to traditional large-format powder products. Blended foods, convenient product formats, and everyday nutrition applications warrant attention.

Price trend:Sufficient standardized public transaction data for the week is unavailable; no overall price direction is assigned.

Regulatory considerations:A new product format does not automatically mean that the ingredient is legally permitted in every food category. Ingredient authorization and product-category requirements in the target market must be verified.

Business recommendations:B2B sales efforts can focus on raw material purity, batch consistency, solubility and processing compatibility, analytical documentation, and the ability to supply at scale, rather than competing solely on low prices.

2.6 Sodium Sarcosinate

No major new industry developments or consistent market quotation trends could be confirmed this week.

Market developments:Distinguish demand for personal care, household and personal care formulations, and other industrial applications. Demand across these different uses should not be treated as interchangeable.

Price trend:There is currently no reliable public evidence supporting a general upward or downward price assessment.

Regulatory considerations:Verify the raw material specifications, impurity requirements, safety documentation, and local regulations applicable to the intended use.

Business recommendations:Prioritize customers' formulation requirements, technical documentation, and quality consistency. For personal care applications, verify compliance requirements against the actual intended use.

2.7 Methylamines: Monomethylamine, Dimethylamine, Trimethylamine, and Methylamine Hydrochloride

Commercial assessments of methylamines should take into account methanol feedstock costs, plant operating conditions, transportation, and downstream demand. Public market reporting on October 10 indicated that domestic methanol prices strengthened amid relatively tight import supplies, while spot availability in some regions continued to be affected by local supply and demand conditions.

Source: Oilchem

Market developments:Higher methanol costs may increase production cost pressure on methylamine manufacturers. The actual impact depends on production processes, feedstock inventories, product mix, and contract cycles.

Price trend:There are no consistent, verifiable public benchmark quotations for all methylamine products this week. It should not be assumed that monomethylamine, dimethylamine, trimethylamine, and methylamine hydrochloride have all increased in price at the same rate or at all.

Regulatory considerations:Continue to verify requirements for hazardous chemical operations, storage and transportation, packaging, exports, and chemical compliance in target markets.

Business recommendations:Confirm active content, delivery method, transportation conditions, and quotation validity separately for each product. For large orders, consider setting a quotation validity period and a mechanism for adjusting prices in response to raw material costs.

2.8 MTBE

MTBE is one of the chemical products for which clear public market signals were available this week.

On October 10, SunSirs reported that China's domestic MTBE market fluctuated upward between October 1 and October 10, with reported prices increasing by approximately 4.21% over the period. The report attributed the increase to concentrated export deliveries by some producers during the holiday period, tighter domestic spot availability, and support from raw material costs.

Source: Tonghuashun Futures

In overseas markets, an industry report published in early October also noted that Chinese MTBE suppliers remained cautious about uncertainty surrounding feedstock availability and export demand. FOB quotations were expected to be influenced by spot supply and international arbitrage demand. This information reflects market expectations at that time and should not be interpreted as a complete record of transactions executed during the current reporting week.

Source: MRCHub

Analysis and recommendations:

Price trend:The market showed an upward trend and consolidation at elevated levels in early October. This does not establish that the latest transaction prices on October 15 continued to rise at the same rate.

Supply and demand:Export deliveries, available spot volumes, and raw material costs remain the main variables to monitor.

Procurement strategy:Check domestic spot quotations alongside FOB China benchmarks. Pay attention to differences in taxes, port charges, freight, and payment terms.

Sales strategy:For orders with specific delivery requirements, prioritize inventory availability and deliverable quantities. Avoid delaying quotations solely on the expectation that market prices will continue to rise.

1. Major Industry Developments This Week

Event 1: China Announces Implementation Arrangements for Revisions to Cosmetic Safety Standards

Category: Regulatory Development

Date: October 8, 2026

Event: China's National Medical Products Administration issued Announcement No. 99 of 2026, setting out implementation arrangements for relevant revisions to the Safety and Technical Standards for Cosmetics.

Areas affected: Cosmetic ingredients, personal care formulations, labeling, and quality control.

Business impact: Customers may need to reassess ingredient lists, formulations, labeling, microbiological limits, and limits for hazardous substances. Specific compliance obligations should be determined based on the relevant revised provisions and their respective implementation dates.

Source: Shanghai Municipal Medical Products Administration

Event 2: China Seeks Public Comments on Draft Amendments to the Food Safety Law

Category: Regulatory Development

Date: Draft-related information was released on October 10, 2026, and reported by an industry regulatory information platform on October 14.

Event: China's State Administration for Market Regulation sought public comments on draft amendments to the Food Safety Law. The proposed changes include matters relating to registration and filing procedures for health foods, as well as labeling requirements.

Areas affected: Food nutritional supplements, health food ingredients, finished-product brands, and contract manufacturers.

Business impact: This remains a draft-stage regulatory development and should not be treated as an already effective new requirement. Monitor the final amendment text, the outcome of the consultation, and the formal implementation arrangements.

Source: CIRS Group

Event 3: Creatine Applications Expand into Functional Foods

Category: Product Innovation

Date: October 13, 2026

Event: FoodNavigator reported that creatine is gradually expanding from traditional sports nutrition powders into protein bars and other functional food products.

Areas affected: Creatine monohydrate, sports nutrition ingredients, and functional food formulations.

Business impact: Ingredient suppliers can explore food-processing compatibility, stability in blended formulations, serving-size design, and applications in small-format packaging. However, the launch of individual new products does not necessarily indicate simultaneous growth in demand across the entire market.

Source: FoodNavigator.com

Event 4: Tight Methanol Supply and Strengthening MTBE Market Conditions

Category: Chemical Market Developments

Date: Early October 2026

Event: Public reports indicated that domestic methanol prices strengthened amid relatively tight import supplies. MTBE was supported by export deliveries, domestic spot availability, and raw material costs.

Areas affected: Methylamines, MTBE, and other related chemical products.

Business impact: Procurement and sales teams should monitor raw material and finished-product markets simultaneously. This can help prevent situations in which rising input costs are not reflected promptly in sales quotations, or in which higher quotations are offered without sufficient inventory to fulfill orders on time.