California-based Herbalife announced the Association of Official Analytical Collaboration (AOAC International) formally certified its proprietary method for identifying and measuring anthraquinones (aloins) in aloe vera.

Regulatory groups require producers of aloe vera products to monitor for naturally occurring compounds such as aloin A, aloin B and aloe-emodin to meet safety guidelines. Herbalife’s method is now the world’s first AOAC-certified approach for detecting aloins, reinforcing safety and quality across the botanical and dietary supplement industries, the company said.

“This AOAC validation is an important milestone for Herbalife and the industry as a whole,” said Gary Swanson, senior vice president of global quality at Herbalife. “We are proud to lead scientific innovation that enhances botanical ingredient safety, benefitting not only Herbalife products and our customers, but also advancing standards across the industry.”

Herbalife’s method is used to test every batch of Herbalife’s aloe-based products to ensure safety while preserving natural benefits. The method was validated through a global multi-laboratory study involving eight independent labs. Each lab tested the same six aloe vera samples, consisting of both raw materials and finished products, using high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) to measure aloin A, aloin B and aloe-emodin, the company said.

“This multi-laboratory validation study supported approval of an analytical method developed by Herbalife scientists as the AOAC 2016.09 Official Final Action Method,” said Dr. Katerina Mastovska, deputy executive director and chief science officer at AOAC. “AOAC official methods undergo rigorous scientific evaluation and are highly credible and globally accepted. As such, this method will help strengthen botanical quality and safety standards worldwide.”

For more information, visit https://ir.herbalife.com or www.aoac.org.