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Jodi Rich is the Publisher of Natural Products Marketplace Magazine. She has been working in the natural products industry for almost seven years and has an extensive background in sales, marketing, and promotions. She graduated with a communications degree from Arizona State University, which isn't surprising because she's quite a talker. Jodi embraces a healthy lifestyle by mastering crazy yoga poses and spending all of her hard earned money on the latest and greatest products from SunFlower Market. Sarah Prahl is an account executive with Natural Products Marketplace. She has been involved in the natural products industry her entire life and is so passionate about the industry, she is also a Clinical Nutritionist. Sarah has a consumer publishing background and in a past life, sold supplements to both small health food stores and large chains. She is excited to bring both her nutrition knowledge and market experience to support growing entrepreneurs in the natural products category! When Sarah isn't selling advertising, you'll find her hiking with her dogs in beautiful Boulder, Colorado or striking a pose at the local yoga studio. |
McCain Bill Under Fire
Posted in
Blog,
Topics,
Adulteration,
Dietary Supplement Health & Education Act (DSHEA),
Government,
Quality Control,
Sports Nutrition,
Store Operations
The Natural Products Industry is in the spotlight with the proposed “Supplement Safety Now” bill from Senator John McCain (R-AZ). The bill intends to eliminate illegal steroids in dietary supplements, but its provisions will negatively impact everyone else who is playing by the rules.
I had the opportunity to sit in on a heated debate at our Focus on the Future Conference this week on this very issue. Travis Tygart, CEO of the US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA), was on the panel representing team McCain. Defending our industry on the panel were Daniel Fabricant Ph.D, (Natural Products Association) and Marc Ullman (Ullman, Shaprio & Ullman LLP).
As a retailer, you are probably wondering how this directly affects you. The new bill would require all retailers to hold contracts of compliance for EVERY finished product on the shelf, violations resulting in monetary penalties. These contracts of compliance are written confirmations from ingredient suppliers or from supplement brand marketers that all pre-market qualifications, such as facility registration and New Dietary Ingredient (NDI) notifications, have been made; otherwise, the retailer will be held as responsible as would a manufacturer.
Musings from the crowd defending the retail stance on this bill included:
- “Are we sending PetSmart to Jail because they sold dog food which contained Melamine?”
- “Is Toys ‘R’ Us getting fined because they stocked a toy from China containing lead?”
The bottom line is that retailers in other industries don’t require this ridiculous paper trail for compliance. Manufacturer and ingredient suppliers should be working on a healthy supply chain, not a retail store. As a retailer selling healthy products such as omega-3s, tea and multi-vitamins, this “steroid bill” would severely increase your work load and most likely limit the number of products SKUs you can put on your shelf.
Our industry acknowledges the fact that there are a few “rouge” manufacturers out there who are currently violating the Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act. If FDA can step up enforcement of existing laws, perhaps the monetary penalties that currently exists under this law could help bring the bad guys down. Increasing rules and tightening regulations is NOT going to make these few “rouge” manufacturers suddenly comply.
The heated discussion with USADA lasted only so long, as the session time expired. However, I can imagine this may be a hot topic next month in Washington D.C. at Lobby Day. If possible, plan to attend and support and protect your right to sell dietary supplements.
Jodi Rich
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