As functional brands chase new actives, the harder questions get treated as afterthoughts: can the ingredient survive the format, stay stable on the shelf, absorb in the body, and still taste good at the last serving? When those answers get skipped, a brand does not have a functional product. It has a functional claim.

This guide breaks down the real formulation and stability challenges behind functional products, and what it takes to move from label claims to products that actually deliver. Built from insights shared by Philip Bromley and Sara Fenn of Virun and featured on the Nombase podcast, it is designed to help operators ask sharper questions and build products that hold up from production to the last serving.

Inside the guide, you’ll learn how to:

• Match a functional ingredient to a format that can carry its dose and protect it

• Spot the stability failures that hide behind a clean lab result

• Understand what "liposomal" and lipid-encapsulated delivery really mean, in plain language

• Avoid the preservative and clean-label traps that quietly compromise a product

• Navigate the real constraints behind creatine, omega-3, NAD+, glutathione, and probiotics

• Ask a formulation partner the right questions before you commit