Letter to the Editor: Invasion of the Seals

Letter to the Editor: Invasion of the Seals

I have become concerned by the recent profusion of "Seals of Approval" that have invaded our industry.
A recent article in an industry magazine caught my eye. "Shuster Offers 'Seal of Quality.' Shuster Laboratories Inc., Quincy, Mass., has launched its Shuster Seal Certification Program for the dietary supplements industry. Manufacturers of dietary supplements who meet the program's criteria will receive the 'Seal of Quality' to put on their label."
I thought, "Not another one!"
In my 30-plus years in the health food industry, I have seen many "seals of approval" start out as a "great idea" then slowly disappear once all the ramifications appear. The Linus Pauling Institute, the Natural Source Vitamin E Association and the NPQAA [Natural Products Quality Assurance Alliance] all used or considered the use of seals on products.

Tru-Label At one point the National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA) considered allowing the use of a Tru-Label symbol on bottles to encourage members to join the Tru-Label program. After considering the problems of monitoring products, possible misuse of the symbol and potential liability ramifications, the symbol use was discarded.
The Tru-Label program continues to be viable without a seal.

GMP Symbol Recently, the NNFA approved the use of a GMP (good manufacturing practices) seal on products manufactured by an NNFA-approved GMP facility. The NNFA GMP program originated in 1992. It is a work in progress that has gone through many versions and is very important to our industry. The GMP seal, however, was not well thought through, and is misleading in its present format. One of the first firms to use the GMP seal in its advertisements proceeded to imply that the seal was an endorsement that its products were the highest quality available. The NNFA then stated that the GMP symbol referred to good manufacturing procedures, not to product quality or efficacy. The seal is not being used in the manner it was intended.

ConsumerLab A for-profit company, ConsumerLab has started testing products in and outside our industry. It issues press releases stating X out of Y brands that were tested fail (or pass) its independent testing procedures with the names of the passing products tested. The inference is that if your product is not listed, then it did not pass (whether it was tested or not). This has created a desire for firms to be "tested." ConsumerLab will test a company's product for a fee. If the product passes and if a licensing fee is paid, the company may use the ConsumerLab seal on its product and advertising.

USP Now comes the U.S. Pharmacopoeia (USP). The USP has recently proposed that it tests dietary supplements and allow its symbol to be used on products by having firms enter into a licensing agreement with the USP, for a fee. The USP has links to the FDA.

ConsumerLab tested and failed two "USP" designated vitamin C products and three "USP" designated calcium products, and publicized these findings.

Seals have their place, but the differences in the products with seals must be identifiable. An appliance with a UL (Underwriters Laboratories) symbol can be compared to a similar product. The differences in the materials used and the quality can be viewed. However, the differences in a brand X supplement product with a seal of approval cannot be visually seen when compared to a quality product with the same seal. What cannot be seen is the quality of the ingredients, the extra steps and care taken during the manufacturing process that improves bioavailability, or the controls and testing that goes beyond the standard GMPs.

The differences in product quality are not visible to your eye, but your body will know the difference.

Seals of approval are fraught with problems.

Regards,
John R. Carlson
President
J.R. Carlson Laboratories, Inc.

Natural Products Industry Insider welcomes all letters. Submissions may be sent to HeatherGranato, Editor, 3300 N. Central Ave., Ste. 2500, Phoenix, AZ 85012, or e-mail[email protected]. Letters may be edited for length or clarity and do not necessarily reflect the viewpoint of Insider or Virgo Publishing.