Supplier relationships that were decades in the making helped herbal supplier Nuherbs weather the coronavirus storm, but the pandemic is likely to have long-lasting effects on botanical ingredient supply chains.
In this episode of Catching Up, Jon Benninger, VP of the Health & Nutrition Network for Informa Markets, connects with Wilson Lau, vice president of Oakland, California-based Nuherbs, providers of herbal remedies steeped in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The virtual one-on-one discussion ranged from the personal to the professional, and provided lots of insight into sourcing high-quality ingredients from Chinese suppliers.
Lau discusses the three things that were working in Nuherbs’ favor when the coronavirus began impacting the Chinese market in early January, a list led by the company’s insistence on organic and lab-tested ingredients. Relationships with those kinds of certified suppliers were never in doubt, Lau says.
Among other highlights:
- How lots of “toddler time” at home has led Lau to look at problems in new, fresh ways, like trying to solve problems through a child’s eyes.
- How just-in-time supply chain mentalities are likely to change, and how supply connections based on transparency rather that transactions are the way of the future.
- How demand for supplements and herbal health solutions is through the roof, but so is the opportunity for adulterated ingredients to find their way to market.
To listen to this as a podcast, visit the Healthy Insider Podcast streaming pages at iTunes and Soundcloud.