Newsletter Offers Botanical Adulteration Prevention Methods

AUSTIN, Texas—A new e-newsletter published by Herb Quality Consortium provides information related to the prevention and detection of herbal adulteration, quality assurance challenges facing the global botanical products community, and the work of the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Program.

The newsletter, “Botanical Adulterants Monitor," will include the latest news, information and research on issues of interest to consumers, healthcare professionals, researchers, managers and technicians relative to the Botanical Adulterants Program, according to Steven Foster, board of trustees president, American Botanical Council (ABC).

The ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Program, led by ABC, the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia (AHP) and the University of Mississippi’s National Center for Natural Products Research (NCNPR), was created in 2011 to educate members of the international herbal and dietary supplements industry about botanical ingredient and product adulteration. The program focuses on accidental adulteration that occurs as a result of poor quality control procedures, as well as intentional adulteration of plant-based products for financial gain.

Now, more than three years since the program’s creation, the new “Botanical Adulterants Monitor" is the next logical step in the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Program’s growth.

“The purpose of our program is primarily educational," said Mark Blumenthal, founder and executive director of ABC, and founder and director of the program. “The ‘Botanical Adulterants Monitor’ newsletter is a valuable way for people in the botanical community to be informed about new developments in areas related to ensuring the authenticity of botanical materials used in herbal products."

In each issue of the “Botanical Adulterants Monitor," readers will find news from the Botanical Adulterants Program, recent regulatory activity by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and/or regulatory agencies in other countries, publications from other organizations, reviews of recently published analytical methods, and additional resources related to detection and prevention of botanical ingredient adulteration. In keeping with ABC’s mission to provide the public with reliable, science-based herbal education, as well as the mission of the Botanical Adulterants Program, the newsletter will be free-access and available to all interested parties.