Key Issues and Speakers at SupplySide

SupplySide West offers more than 40 education sessions covering key topics and featuring leading experts. Here are a few notable sessions that you should plan to attend. And to check out the entire program, visit the website and click on Education.

We have arranged a great panel on the topic of ingredient supplier qualification and GMP compliance. This is a critical area that FDA keeps emphasizing. How do you qualify your suppliers? How do you ensure that the materials they provide and the CofAs and other documents are accurate? You could audit every supplier for every ingredient they provide to you (as noted by FDA at SupplySide East). This panel focuses on an ongoing project by all of the trades (AHPA, CHPA, CRN, NPA, UNPA) to develop a standardized protocol for qualifying suppliers. Companies volunteering on this important project include DSM, AM Todd, Kyowa, Sabinsa, Nutramax, Ambria, Perrigo, NBTY, Bayer, Colorcon, BASF, NSF, Nutrilite, Albion, PL Thomas, etc. For this panel at SupplySide West, we have Mike Bradley of Perrigo, Anthony Palmieri of DSM and Dr. Harry Rice of UNPA. It is set for Wed. Oct. 20 at 3pm.

Another big subject for supplement companies is management of adverse events and their potential for litigation. I am very pleased to have Garry Pay, vice president and assistant general counsel for Twinlab on this panel along with Rick Kingston, PharmD, from SafetyCall International. This panel is on Fri. Oct. 22 at 9am.

And of course, it would not be SupplySide if we failed to address trends and opportunities. We have many sessions on this topic, including NMI’s Steven French revealing their 10 hottest trends for the decade, and market forecaster Liz Sloan discussing opportunities to capitalize on the needs and wants of the various generations that make up the American consumer demographic. Steven is speaking Thur. Oct 21 at 10am, and Liz is speaking Fri. Oct. 22 at 9am. We also have great sessions lined up from Integrated Marketing Group’s Jeff Hilton, Datamonitor’s Tom Vierhile, and more.

We will also address the controversial area of dietary supplements, sports performance, and steroids with U.S Anti-Doping Agency CEO Travis Tygart. Travis participated on a heated panel during our last “Focus on the Future” conference, and he is coming back for more. USADA launched the “Supplement Safety Now” campaign with the NFL, NBA, MLB, NCAA and other sports groups earlier this year, seeking broad changes to DSHEA and supplement regulation. His program formed the basis for the “McCain bill” that industry and consumers fought off. But, is there a way that industry and the sports organizations can work together to address any issues? I hope so, and you should be sure to come and hear what Travis thinks about it. His session is set for Fri. Oct. 22 at 10am.

Both the Federal Trade Commission and the Food and Drug Administration will be speaking on the program as well. FTC’s Devon Domond will discuss his agency’s recent enforcement actions against supplement and food companies. FDA’s Bradford Williams will speak on dietary supplement safety including New Dietary Ingredients and GMPs. Any chance to hear directly from the agencies and ask questions is worth making time for. The FTC presentation is on Fri. Oct. 22 at 9am, and the FDA presentation is on Wed. Oct. 20 at 2pm.

There are still another 30+ great sessions, and they are all listed on the website. I want to thank our Education Sponsor, Cognis, for once again providing the support and resources to put this all together. Without their commitment, it could not happen. So, get signed up for the Education Package, take advantage of the best program in the industry, and make sure you have the knowledge you need to be successful. I’ll see you there!