News in Brief

The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) sent a letter to the editor of Consumer Reports, taking the magazine to task for the inaccuracies in its cover story about Dangerous Supplements. ... Carrington Laboratories Inc. announced Abundant Health & Wellness LLC settled a trademark infringement suit filed by Carrington in September 2003. Under terms of the agreement, Abundant Health & Wellness acknowledged infringement of the Manapol® trademark and will cease such actions. ... The Witte Co. unveiled a 3,000-square-foot testing lab at its New Jersey headquarters to aid in pilot testing and scale-up of projects. ... Mid Oaks Investments LLC purchased Wilkinson Manufacturing Co. and plans to expand Wilkinson's business activities in the aluminum and plastic packaging markets.... To keep up with increasing manufacturing demands,Botanicaps Inc. added higher-output tablet presses and started construction on a high-tech laboratory. ... Celeste Contract Packaging completed a quality systems initiative and now meets all GMP (good manufacturing practice) standards for prescription and over-the-counter (OTC) packaging. ...TricorBraun acquired Smith Container Corp., an Atlanta-based distributor with $55 million in annual revenue. ... Health Enhancement Products filed a U.S. patent application related to preparation method and use of a phyto-percolate in disease treatment. ... The Cure Our Children Foundation released a report concluding complementary use of nutrition and dietary supplements is beneficial in the medical treatment of cancer. ... Cargill's OptaFlex chondroitin made its retail debut in Renutra Natural Health Products' reformulated Hydra Joint Total. ... Green Source International completed construction on a 10,000-square-meter GMP facility in Ningbo, China; the company is seeking U.S. distributors for its products, including black cohosh, red clover and dong quai. ... NutraGenesis announced its Sensoril anti-stress ingredient received a second U.S. patent (#6,713,092) covering composition and methodology for producing the ingredient from Ashwagandha. ... Enzymotec Ltd. developed a prototype nutrition bar, carDiabeat, designed to address the cardiovascular health of diabetics. ... Vital Basics filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection; the company recently settled a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) about unsubstantiated claims that resulted in Vital Basics paying $1 million in consumer redress. ... Tree of Life announced two distribution agreements. The company is the new national distributor forKETO Foods Inc. and will serve as the Southwest U.S. distributor forSolgar Vitamin & Herb Co. ... The Guelph Food Technology Centre added the Genesis software package to its existing resources to help companies with food and supplement nutrition labeling. ... Health Strategy Consulting relocated its Japanese office to keep up with market growth. ...Novogen received a Canadian patent (#2,136,233) covering the isoflavone supplements Promensil, Rimostil and Trinovin. ... The International Conference & Exhibition of the Modernization of Chinese Medicine & Health Products is set for Aug. 12 to 16 in Hong Kong; information is available online (www.icmcm.com). ... The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) set its 2004 Annual Conference for Oct. 24 to 27 in Washington, D.C. ... Dixie USA introduced a spice-like container of Pharmachem Laboratories' Phase 2 Starch Neutralizer® for consumers to sprinkle directly on starchy foods. ...NutraCea was issued U.S. Patent #6,733,799 B2 for a patent covering its rice bran derivatives and heart disease.