SAN CLEMENTE, Calif.—Metagenics Inc. chief science officer Jeffrey Bland, Ph.D., FACN, CNS has been appointed to the Advisory Board of HealthCorps®, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit "Peace Corps" for health education and activism founded in 2004 by cardiac surgeon and best-selling author, Dr. Mehmet Oz.

As a member of the Advisory Board, Dr. Bland joins health experts, public officials and philanthropists who share the mission of finding proactive, practical solutions to fighting childhood obesity and diabetes.

"I'm honored to be associated with such an admirable organization as HealthCorps," said Dr. Bland. "Their enthusiasm and achievements are a bright light in the battle against childhood obesity and lifestyle related chronic diseases."

General Nutrition Centers Inc.(GNC) appointed Robert M. Kral as senior vice president of merchandising. He will report directly to Beth Kaplan, president and chief merchandising and marketing officer. Kral is a 27-year veteran of Walgreens, the nation’s largest drug store chain, where he rose from store pharmacist through store manager, district manager and operations vice president positions to head, as senior vice president of purchasing, merchandising and marketing initiatives for the $59 billion company. He left Walgreens in 2007 to become an entrepreneur and consultant.

BLOOMINGDALE, Ill.—NOW Foods founder Elwood Richard is one of 31 finalists for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award in the U.S. Midwest, which honors entrepreneurs whose ingenuity, hard work and perseverance have created and sustained successful, growing business ventures.

“We are very pleased that our founder has been recognized as one of the premier entrepreneurs in the Midwest,” said NOW president Al Powers. “His vision has guided the growth of a company that is not only very successful by conventional business standards, but has also maintained its social commitments by giving back to the world community and making better health affordable to as many people as possible.”

Independent judging panels are established in each country to select the finalists and winners from the nominations received. Criteria include: entrepreneurial spirit, financial performance, strategic direction, community/global impact, innovation, and personal integrity/influence.

The E & Y USA 2009 winner will be announced at a black-tie award ceremony at the Hilton Chicago Hotel on June 26th.