Expert: Dietary supplement product quality requires focus on SOP’s, supplier evaluation

Expert: “Seed to Shelf” dietary supplement product quality requires focus on SOP’s, supplier evaluation

A new working set of quality standards for the food and dietary supplement industries is starting to surface in response to recent quality crises.  However, a consistent framework or standard for an objective evaluation of supplier facilities and documentation has yet to be developed by the supplement industry.

Some first steps to develop a robust SOP system from seed to shelf is the subject of a talk by botanical quality expert Trish Flaster at the UNPA Raw Materials & Supply Chain Summit in Salt Lake City on February 23-24, 2016.

Building on the foundation of the Standardized Information on Dietary Ingredients, or SIDI, the talk will propose some possible next steps to include SIDI as part of a robust materials and suppler qualification program.

As part of the talk, titled “Seed to Shelf: Building Standard Operating Procedures for Botanicals”, ethnobotanist Flaster will explore some of the challenges to (and benefits from) strong SOP and documentation through the botanical supply chain.  The talk will focus on three main elements of a great “seed to shelf” quality program: Materials, Facilities and People.

“It is insightful to have the UNPA forum devoted to supplier issues”, said Flaster, Executive Director, Botanical Liaisons LLC and Co-Founder, IDDI. “The mandate for more rigorous material and supplier evaluation has never been more clear. It is important that everyone along the supply chain collaborate and contribute to setting standards for quality and transparency,” said Flaster.

IDDI has received a number of grants to develop compliance tools that fill gaps found with current standards and tools available.  These tools include ID Verified™, which aims to set a standard for identity testing of dietary ingredients. Spec Verified™ includes the use of SIDI documentation to generate an ‘internal specification’ for product attributes and testing, while Supplier Verified™ offers manufacturers and ingredient distributors a clear path to evaluate and set standards for their supplier qualification programs that will pass regulatory requirements established by FSMA.

“Companies who are heavily invested in developing products sometimes overlook the critical questions and controls required to ensure product safety and quality from their suppliers,” said Blake Ebersole, co-founder of IDDI. “It is our goal to support the creation of a high but fair bar that sets a new standard for the industry.

“IDDI is fortunate to help some key industry players to make meaningful improvements.  The quality bug is getting contagious,” said Ebersole.

IDDI, short for ID of Dietary Ingredients, was formed in 2015 by industry veterans Trish Flaster and Blake Ebersole, to establish standards and verification programs related to identity testing and specifications for dietary ingredients.  For more information, please visit www.ingredientID.com

Contacts:

Blake Ebersole
Co-Founder, IDDI
President, NaturPro Scientific
blake@npscientific.com
www.npscientific.com

Trish Flaster, M.S.

Co-Founder, IDDI
Executive Director, Botanical Liaisons LLC
tflastersprint@earthlink.net
www.botanicalliaisons.net