| As more and more individuals begin to practice | | | | products, or workers educated enough to run the |
| preventative healthcare, most start with | | | | machinery. The problem falls inside "2nd world" |
| supplements to either address a concern or issue | | | | countries that do have educated workers and |
| or to supplement their diet to fill nutritional gaps. | | | | infrastructure that allows the building of advanced |
| When taking this first step there are a lot of | | | | factories, but where the governments either |
| questions and decisions to make given the variety | | | | can't, won't, or don't care to put into effect rules |
| on the market. Unfortunately the price tag ranges | | | | and regulations guarding the quality of these |
| a great deal as well and is not always indicative of | | | | products that eventually are consumed by people. |
| quality. Though you can purchase great | | | | Unfortunately China and India are notorious for |
| supplements for a reasonable cost, a vast | | | | having contamination problems with their products. |
| amount of cheap vitamins are so because they | | | | All of these events have been traced back to |
| use cheap raw materials. Every product starts | | | | one or a few individuals who "spiked" their product |
| with raw materials; therefore, where the | | | | with something cheaper to make higher profits, or |
| companies purchase the materials they utilize | | | | changed their manufacturing procedures for the |
| needs to be brought into consideration. | | | | same reason, but they were caught. Although |
| To further discuss raw materials, I sought the | | | | these two countries have many high quality |
| expertise of Margaret Conklin, N.D. With 20 years | | | | factories that have produced consistently good |
| in the Nutraceutical business, Margaret Conklin, N.D. | | | | products, we have to be aware that there are |
| has visited many of the major manufacturers in | | | | few regulations in effect to prevent the few bad |
| the United States, allowing her to have intimate | | | | seeds from contaminating the raw materials that |
| knowledge of which are truly pharmaceutical | | | | go into many supplements. |
| grade factories, which companies are striving to | | | | Let's bring our focus back to North America. |
| get to that level, and which are nothing but old | | | | There are many high quality supplement factories |
| machines in warehouses or even garages. She has | | | | here that purchase the vast majority of their |
| been in the vitamin and natural health field her | | | | goods from 1st world (North American, European, |
| entire life, learning from her father, and starting | | | | Japanese, etc.) raw material manufacturers and |
| fresh out of college managing the oldest health | | | | are happy to pay the difference in price for |
| food store in St. Louis. Here she shares her insight | | | | quality and peace of mind. There are also many |
| into the supplement business and origins of raw | | | | companies that are more interested in price and |
| material. | | | | people who will always purchase the less |
| "No matter where you go in the world there are | | | | expensive brands and take that risk. |
| good businesses and bad businesses; those that | | | | This being said I am happy to see that, over the |
| are proud of what they make and produce a high | | | | past many months, has noticeably made the |
| quality product, and those that are simply | | | | conscience decision to turn their focus on the |
| interested in the profit margin. Mix in with that | | | | higher quality supplement companies. They choose |
| logic the fact that some countries have more | | | | quality and peace of mind over bottom line, and |
| governmental regulation than others and we get | | | | are still able to deliver these premium products |
| to the question of Chinese and Indian raw | | | | for a fair price." Margaret Conklin N.D. |
| materials. Now, so called "First World" countries | | | | It is often recommended that one does not |
| have governments that regulate the | | | | purchase a vitamin from a retail mega-store |
| manufacturing procedures of consumed goods, | | | | because supplements are not their expertise, |
| highly educated workers, and the infrastructure | | | | instead choose from a specialized and |
| that allows them to build highly advanced buildings | | | | knowledgeable distributor that focuses on quality |
| and machinery needed to make good products; | | | | products and ingredients. Read the labels carefully, |
| vitamin, herb, mineral, and nutraceutical raw | | | | if the product is tested for purity and the |
| materials in this case. | | | | manufacturer follows the cGMP's, more than likely |
| So called "3rd world" countries don't have the | | | | it will state this on their label, and if in doubt, |
| ability to build factories to make these kinds of | | | | contact the manufacturer and ask. |