Naturex Lists Four Steps to Red Flag Botanical Adulteration

24 Mar 2014 --- Adulteration is a constant challenge for the dietary supplement industry. In order to maintain consumer loyalty, manufacturers need to rely on a strong partner that has complete control over all aspects of the ingredient production process. Recent publications have cast doubt on the reliability and authenticity of botanical ingredients used in food supplements.

24 Mar 2014 --- Naturex is ramping up efforts to tackle the issue of botanical adulteration, which is a constant challenge for the dietary supplement industry. To combat this issue, Naturex - a specialist in specialty plant-based natural ingredients - has set out a four step programme to ensure customers get what they pay for. In addition, Naturex’s R&D Director, Antoine Bily, will investigate the topic of during Vitafoods Europe in Geneva in a conference session entitled: “Botanical Adulteration: Industry Challenges and Solutions” on May 6th.

A spokesperson for Naturex told FoodIngredientsFirst that botanical adulteration is occurring in many markets. “It is correlated with the scarcity and price of feedstock,” he said. “It is occurring in many markets, such as synthetic curcumin substituted for curcumin, high fructose corn syrup or cane sugar being used to adulterate honey, and so on”.

It is a growing concern for the industry, the spokesperson explained. “As the market for natural products is growing, adulteration is growing,” he said. “However, adulteration has always existed. Frederick Accum, a German chemist, was the first to raise the alarm about food adulteration in 1820.”

The four step programme set out by Naturex starts with ‘Step One: a good ingredient starts at the source with high quality raw materials’. “At Naturex, we believe that providing the right ingredient starts by selecting a reliable partner who watches carefully over the raw material and respects the environment,” said Serge Sabrier, Chief Procurement Officer and President of the Sustainability Committee. To get closer to its partners, the company has implemented eight local purchasing offices all around the world. By thoroughly assessing its suppliers and auditing them on a regular basis, the company is developing a full traceability system from field to extract.

Step 2 is ‘Mastering quality control throughout the process’. From the moment raw materials arrive at the factory until the finished products are ready for dispatch, ingredients undergo a series of tests and analyses at key phases of the production process. Naturex is able to perform more than 350 different methods of analysis from macro/micro authentication based on assessment at macroscopic levels by botanists to phytochemical levels involving sophisticated methods like High Performance Thin Layer Chromatography (HPTLC), High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC), and Gas Chromatography (GC).

“We use methods at the cutting edge of technology, and our team of experts helps to identify reliable and replicable methods of analysis. These methods are used as references by highly respected organizations that set the standards for plants and dietary supplements,” said Bily. In 2013, Naturex contributed to setting the specifications and methods of analysis of the new USP approved standards for rosemary extracts.

Step 3: ‘A whole program of certifications to guarantee the quality of ingredients’. Naturex has implemented and developed a quality assurance system in each of its 15 factories worldwide. This effective quality system certified by independent certification organizations guarantees full traceability throughout the chain and contributes to managing the risk of cross-contamination.
 
Step 4: ‘Industrial expertise to ensure consistency and efficacy all year long’ Naturex’s expertise and experience lies in its thorough knowledge of botanical fingerprinting and its incorporation in the matrices of finished products.

“Each botanical has its particularity and changes throughout the year depending on weather conditions and soil quality, for example,” explained Bily. The company has built a solid reputation in terms of botanical identification and a strong background in plant science. For example, Naturex has developed an exclusive method for distinguishing between Asian and US black cohosh rhizomes. The method is still widely used in the industry to verify the identity of the plant.
 
By Sonya Hook