Podcast Vetting Botanical Raw Materials and Fighting Adulteration

During a summit recently hosted by the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), GNC unveiled guidelines to effectively trace and test raw materials “from seed to shelf.” Mark Blumenthal of the American Botanical Council (ABC) offers his perspective.

March 9, 2016

Manufacturers of dietary supplements are well aware that the global supply chain of botanical raw materials is vast and varied. Some raw materials are high quality, while others sold on the cheap may be intentionally adulterated, jeopardizing the reputation of manufacturers.

Actions taken by New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, and heightened media scrutiny of the herbal supplement industry, have underscored that it is paramount to effectively trace and test raw materials “from seed to shelf” to combat adulteration and ensure the quality of dietary ingredients.

During a summit hosted last month by the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA), industry representatives discussed a number of measures to restore confidence in dietary supplements, including most notably, botanical raw material guidelines that GNC announced.

In this episode, Josh Long, INSIDER’s legal and regulatory editor, and Mark Blumenthal, the American Botanical Council’s (ABC) founder and executive director, discuss:

The draft botanical raw material guidelines unveiled by GNC;
Current agricultural practices in the botanical industry;
The ‘tectonic shift’ in the industry to ensure the quality of raw materials; and
An ABC program to detect and fight adulteration in herbs that are commonly found to be adulterated.

Links and Resources:

UNPA Raw Materials & Supply Chain Summit

INSIDER Blog: GNC Adopts Botanical Raw Material Guidelines in Effort to Rebuild Consumer Confidence

Good Agricultural and Collection Practice for Herbal Raw Materials

ABC AHP NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Program

Got feedback? Email Josh Long at [email protected], or tweet to @NatProdINSIDER using the hashtag #INSIDERpodcast