the evening primrose oil your mum swore by has followed you into perimenopause
The women who kept Efamol evening primrose oil in the bathroom cabinet in the 1980s and 90s, and the daughters who grew up with the bottle, are today's perimenopause generation, and the brand founded in 1977 has followed them there. Omega Femme pairs its Rigel® evening primrose oil with a patented saffron extract and vitamins B6, D3 and E for the monthly cycle, PMS and perimenopause. Vegan, £34.99 for a 30-day supply at efamol.com.
Efamol was founded in 1977 by Dr David Horrobin, and its evening primrose oil became a fixture of British bathroom cabinets through the 1980s and 90s. On 1 September the brand launched Omega Femme, a female-first formula for the generation that grew up with it.
Each two-capsule daily dose carries 1000mg of Efamol's Rigel® evening primrose oil, providing 115mg of the omega-6 GLA, and 30mg of Safr'Inside™ saffron extract, which Efamol's label equates to 150mg of saffron. Three vitamins complete the formula: B6, which contributes to the regulation of hormonal activity and the reduction of tiredness and fatigue; D3, for normal immune and muscle function; and E, for the protection of cells from oxidative stress.
Saffron is the modern half of the story. Safr'Inside™ is a patented, encapsulated extract from Activ'Inside, near Bordeaux, which reports ten times more safranal than non-encapsulated saffron extracts (supplier data). Saffron has been researched for its role in supporting mood and emotional balance, and Marie Claire's health editor named Safr'Inside an ingredient to watch for 2026.
The evening primrose oil is the heritage half. Efamol developed its own seed, Rigel®, bred to carry 33% more GLA than standard evening primrose (company claim), grown in the Netherlands and New Zealand for over 40 years, traceable to the farm and batch-tested for its GLA content. The brand counts more than 750 scientific publications on evening primrose oil's active ingredient and over 350 clinical studies using Efamol products, 28 of them in women's health (company figures).
Omega Femme is built to travel with a woman across hormonal life stages, from the monthly cycle to perimenopause, rather than serve a single moment.
"So many women reach a point where they feel more emotional, overwhelmed, tired or simply 'not quite themselves,' and don't realise their changing hormones could be part of the picture," says Rosie Millen, nutritional therapist and founder of Miss Nutritionist. "What I love about Omega Femme is that it's thoughtfully formulated for women, with clinically studied ingredients, offering gentle, natural support rather than a quick fix."
Omega Femme is a food supplement, not a medicine, and does not replace a balanced diet. Anyone pregnant, breastfeeding, on HRT or taking medication, particularly antidepressants, should speak to a GP or pharmacist before use, and persistent low mood always deserves a doctor's attention.
Omega Femme is available at efamol.com at £34.99 for a 30-day supply, or £31.49 a month on subscription.
Trend context
World Menopause Day falls on Sunday 18 October 2026. An estimated 13 million people in the UK are perimenopausal or menopausal, equivalent to a third of the UK female population (Wellbeing of Women estimate, cited by NHS England).
The market built around them was worth $490 million in 2024 and is projected to reach $648 million by 2030, with dietary supplements making up 98% of 2024 revenue (Grand View Research). Bayer entered in January 2025 with CanesMeno, launched exclusively at Boots (Bayer UK, 29 January 2025).
The rush has brought scrutiny. On 25 March 2026 the Advertising Standards Authority upheld rulings against five supplement advertisers over menopause and hormonal-health claims, and on 30 September Which? reported on 26 menopause supplements carrying more than 80 different active ingredients between them.
Efamol arrives with more than 350 clinical studies behind its evening primrose oil, two named actives at doses printed on the label, and a name the perimenopause generation already knows from the bathroom cabinet. Saffron, meanwhile, was named an ingredient to watch for 2026 by Marie Claire's health editor (30 December 2025), and the largest saffron mood trial to date, 202 adults over 12 weeks, was published in 2025 (NutraIngredients, 1 August 2025).
For the woman navigating hormonal change, that means a research-first option with a name her mother trusted.
About Efamol
Why we exist
Efamol was founded by scientists in 1977 on a conviction the industry didn't yet share: that omega fatty acids matter profoundly to human health, and that women's health deserved serious research at a time when it received almost none. Nearly five decades later, the conviction hasn't changed — only the life stages of the women we serve.
How we do it
Research first, always. We developed our own evening primrose seed, Rigel®, bred to carry 33% more GLA than standard varieties, grown in the Netherlands and New Zealand for over 40 years, traceable to the farm and batch-tested so the GLA on the label is the GLA in the capsule at expiry. We fund and publish clinical studies on our own products rather than borrow other people's, and we formulate with clinically studied branded actives at doses printed on the label.
What we do
Efamol makes omega-based food supplements: the Pure Evening Primrose Oil range (500mg and 1000mg capsules and a dropper), the Efalex brain-health line, Active Memory, vegan and children's omega-3, and a mood and cycle tracker app. The brand was founded in 1977 by Dr David Horrobin. Today Efamol Ltd is based in Hessle, East Yorkshire, and has been owned since 2006 by Wassen International, itself part of South Africa's Vital Group.
Why it matters
The wellness market is flooded with unstudied blends shouting at women whose hormonal symptoms were dismissed by medicine for decades, and the regulator has started pulling their adverts. If Efamol vanished at midnight, the women who have kept it in the cabinet since the 1980s would lose an evening primrose oil with its own seed, a farm it can trace every bottle to, and its own clinical record, and the category would lose its benchmark for what a claim should look like.
Who it's for
The woman who feels more emotional, more tired, less herself — and suspects her hormones are part of the picture. She wants gentle support with receipts, not a quick fix with a hashtag. Quite often, she's the daughter of a woman who kept Efamol in the cabinet the first time round.
Proof points
Founded 1977. More than 750 scientific publications on evening primrose oil's active ingredient; over 350 clinical studies using Efamol products, 28 of them in women's health (company figures, efamol.com). Rigel® seed: 33% more GLA than standard evening primrose (company claim). Grown in the Netherlands and New Zealand for 40-plus years; every bottle traceable to the farm; every batch tested for GLA content.
Traction & credibility
A brand name that dates from 1977. Clinical work with named academic researchers, including Dr Simon Dyall and Dr Alex Richardson, whose Efamol-funded studies are listed on efamol.com's research page. Owned since 2006 by Wassen International, part of the Vital Group, which Wassen describes as the biggest vitamin and health supplement manufacturer in South Africa. Milestones include the Efalex relaunch (2024) and Omega Femme, a female-first formula (September 2026).
Spokespeople
Rosie Millen
Nutritional Therapist, founder of Miss Nutritionist
Rosie Millen is a nutritional therapist who set up Miss Nutritionist in 2010 and built her practice around burnout, energy and mood; she is the author of Burnout's a B*tch! She talks about hormones and mood in the language women actually use, feeling 'not quite themselves', and frames supplements as gentle support with evidence behind them rather than a quick fix.
Expertise
Nutrition for mood and energy; burnout and stress; women's hormonal wellbeing; workplace wellbeing
Notability
Author, Burnout's a B*tch! A 6-week recipe and lifestyle plan to reset your energy. Founder, Miss Nutritionist (2010).
Talking points
The asset
the evening primrose oil your mum swore by has followed you into perimenopause
efamol.com/products/omegafemme
The story
Efamol put evening primrose oil in British bathroom cabinets from 1977. The women who took it for their cycles, skin and PMS in the 1980s and 90s, and the daughters who grew up with the bottle, are the perimenopause generation now, and on 1 September the brand launched Omega Femme for them: 1000mg of its own Rigel® evening primrose oil delivering 115mg GLA, 30mg of patented Safr'Inside™ saffron, and vitamins B6, D3 and E. Vegan, two capsules a day, built to span the monthly cycle, PMS and perimenopause.
Why it matters
An estimated 13 million people in the UK are peri- or menopausal (Wellbeing of Women, cited by NHS England), the market around them was worth $490 million in 2024 (Grand View Research), and on 25 March 2026 the Advertising Standards Authority upheld rulings against five menopause-supplement advertisers in a single day. A brand with 350 clinical studies behind it entering now is a story about where the category goes next.
Who does it impact
Women navigating hormonal change get a research-first option with a name their mothers trusted. Pharmacists and health stores get a heritage brand their older customers already recognise. And a generation of daughters finds the brand their mothers swore by, made for them both.
Proof points
Founded 1977; 750-plus publications on evening primrose oil's active ingredient; 350-plus clinical studies using Efamol products, 28 in women's health (company figures). Rigel® seed bred for 33% more GLA (company claim), grown in the Netherlands and New Zealand for over 40 years, traceable to the farm. Safr'Inside™ patented, with ten times the safranal of non-encapsulated extracts (supplier data), named an ingredient to watch for 2026 by Marie Claire (30 December 2025). EFSA-authorised vitamin claims throughout. Rosie Millen: "gentle, natural support rather than a quick fix." £34.99 at efamol.com; launched 1 September; World Menopause Day is Sunday 18 October.
CTA
Samples, imagery and interviews via info@wassen.com. Rosie Millen available for the nutrition conversation; full formula at efamol.com/products/omegafemme.
Key facts
- Product Name
- Omega Femme
- Launch Date
- 2026-09-01
- Price
- £34.99 for a 30-day supply; £31.49 on subscription (checked 1 Oct 2026)
- Availability
- efamol.com
- Key Ingredients
- Rigel® evening primrose oil 1000mg (115mg GLA); Safr'Inside™ saffron extract 30mg; vitamin B6 10mg; vitamin D3 20µg; vitamin E 12mg (per two-capsule daily dose)
- Format
- Vegan capsules, two a day with food
- Target Audience
- Women navigating monthly cycle, PMS, and perimenopause
- Brand founded
- 1977, by Dr David Horrobin
- Company
- Efamol Ltd, Hessle, East Yorkshire. Owned by Wassen International since 2006, part of South Africa's Vital Group
- Research
- 750+ publications on evening primrose oil's active ingredient. 350+ clinical studies using Efamol products, 28 in women's health (company figures)
- Peg
- World Menopause Day, Sunday 18 October 2026
Get in touch
Courtney Badenhorst
Global Brand Manager
Drop me a note and I'll reply by email.