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Herbal Supplements

NPA CEO Comments After Attorney General Deepens Supplement Investigation

by Cristina Goodwin | February 25, 2015

Three weeks after ordering four major retailers to pull store-brand supplements after DNA tests found little or none of the listed herbs, New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman is targeting manufacturers of the products.

Schneiderman sent letters to four manufacturers demanding detailed ingredient and quality control information on every herbal supplement sold in New York state. The companies’ products include the store-brand supplements ordered off the shelves at Walmart, Walgreen’s, Target and GNC stores in New York state. Letters were sent to Pharmavite LLC, maker of the Nature Made brand; NBTV Inc., maker of Sundown Naturals, Nature’s Bounty, Vitamin World and other brands; Nature’s Way Products Inc., maker of Nature’s Way brand; and Nutraceutical Corp., maker of Herbs for Kids and other brands.

Natural Products Association (NPA) CEO and Executive Director Daniel Fabricant, PhD, former director of the Division of Dietary Supplement Programs at the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), commented on Schneiderman’s demand for information from the dietary supplement manufacturers.

“All of the information the attorney general is requesting from these manufacturers can be accessed by the Food and Drug Administration. The federal government is fully equipped to regulate dietary supplements, and goes to great lengths to ensure consumer and public health is protected. If the FDA finds issues with manufacturers, it swiftly and resolutely takes action against those firms. In my time at the agency, we were not shy about going after those who put consumers are risk,” Fabricant said.

“It is perplexing as to why Attorney General Schneiderman continues to use resources to address dietary supplement matters which do not fall within his authority and are already handled by regulators within the federal government. The attorney general seems more motivated by generating headlines and plaintiff’s cases than by protecting the public health. It’s been three weeks since the attorney general asked retailers to remove products from their shelves without sharing the study data that served as the scientific basis for this request. The Natural Products Association has serious concerns over the scientific basis for that recall. It has been more than a week since the winds of change from the attorney general focused attention away from DNA in botanical extracts and toward structure/function claims for ingredients with established science behind them. These actions set a dangerous precedent not just for dietary supplement retailers but for the entire retail market, including manufacturers and ingredient suppliers. If actions such as this are permitted, they will surely branch out to other commodities and industries.”

“As the attorney general’s actions evolve, it’s imperative that we continue demanding transparency and requesting his office release the study data. NPA continues with our efforts to hold the attorney general accountable via our grassroots outreach, and we encourage all retailers and manufacturers in all industries to speak up with resolve on this issue. NPA is committed to quality, and when that quality comes into question, we take that very seriously. That is why the organization boasts former FDA personnel on staff and partners with trusted brands such as UL to ensure industry members are fully educated on Good Manufacturing Practices and other quality control measures to make sure only the best products are reaching consumers. If Attorney General Schneiderman has questions on quality and what the industry is doing to guarantee safe and effective supplements, we welcome the opportunity to discuss this with him.”

For more information, visit www.NPAinfo.org.

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