Seeing suppliers as true partners is key to successful business continuity planning

A business continuity plan is essential for every company, but this is especially important for contract manufacturers that depend on outside sources for ingredients and packaging components. With the globalization of the industry, and the way the nutraceuticals industry’s supply chain works across international boundaries, and with late delivery potentially causing a halt in the manufacturing process, contract manufacturers must have plans in place to ensure smooth operation. Contract manufacturers rely on raw material vendors and packaging suppliers to make products, so it is imperative that the finished brands know that their contract manufacturers have a plan to deal with out-of-stock situations. Addressing any issue, whether it is from a distribution error or logistical delay, manufacturers must continue to provide brands with consistent on-time delivery.

The industry must adhere to GMPs (good manufacturing practices) and proactively mitigate risk. This means not only making primary suppliers accountable to very high standards (i.e., strict incoming raw material requirements), but also pre-qualifying secondary and tertiary suppliers.

Working with suppliers closely to verify that raw material requirements are being met is a key factor, but the relationship also has other benefits. A well-researched and reliable supply chain should lead to excellent two-way communication. For example, being warned promptly of any likely delays or issues gives more visibility and extra time to make other arrangements, which means contract manufacturers can continue to supply products on time.

Both consumers and brand owners have an understandable increased interest in the integrity of the supply chain for nutraceuticals. The types of ingredients that go into the product and the fillers or additives used are increasingly drawing consumer attention. For example, consumers want to know if supplements are vegetarian, non-genetically modified organism (GMO) and/or natural. These issues are more acute for brand owners, and they need assurances about the ingredient’s purity and identity as well as heavy metals and microbial content to ensure the highest quality finished product.

Building a true partnership with suppliers means they look after contract manufacturers’ interests and communicate information about new, trending ingredients so that manufacturers can continue to innovate for brand owners. In fact, through these partnerships on many occasions, contract manufacturers are among the first to hear of new ingredients coming to market.

Moreover, it is always good practice for brands to ask their contract manufacturers about their relationships with suppliers. Brands should ask questions about the strength and length of their relationships, and inquire about the systems they have to check beyond the certificate of analysis (CoA) that is normally provided by the vendor. Another important question to ask is if contract manufacturers use a trust and verify policy with ingredient suppliers; i.e., do contract manufacturers test incoming batches and undertake onsite audits at least once every two years?

The buyer-supplier relationship, and the integrity and strength of the supply chain are key considerations in business continuity planning. Therefore, they need to be controlled and managed carefully for continued success in a global marketplace.

Shuli Huang graduated from Jiangxi University of Traditional Chinese Medicine in 1994, majoring in Traditional Chinese Medicine Pharmaceutical. Huang is also a licensed pharmacist, holding the title of senior pharmaceutical engineer at Sirio Pharma. She has over 20 years of health care experience with a particular focus on the quality management of health food.