Then they trot out studies that often cherry pick data or intentionally mislead the public. The studies are given credibility because they appear in the Archives of Internal Medicine and Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA).

Typically the supplement industry responds in an intelligent and consumer centric way but on the defensive nonetheless. Who could blame us?

The same journals that publish the supplement damning studies sell the majority of advertising space to pharmaceutical companies. Could there be a reason supplement research is under reported?  The pharma bias drives negative supplement studies are what we have come to expect.

Pharmaceutical companies have a legal payola system to bribe doctors and the FDA regulates for special interest profits at the cost of national health for all of us. The deck sure seems stacked against us, doesn’t it?

But wait just a minute. With this latest batch of negative press, nobody seemed to notice. Consumers didn’t care. Maybe they’re all “occupied” with other interests these days.

We’ve reached a tipping point. Consumers, especially discerning natural food shoppers, are no longer swayed by fear tactics and misinformation. They have their own personal experience of greater health and vitality to trust. That’s pretty hard to beat.

What works for health is also one of the most shared experiences throughout social networks. When it comes to health care, the emperor has no clothes.

It doesn’t take Wiki Leaksto tells us either. There are more than enough of us

Arab Spring, European Summer, American Fall Chinese Winter

who know better. Many are out in the streets protesting right now and they understand the connections between our health and our environment.

Now is the time to capitalize on the base of savvy, well educated customers we’ve attracted to the value of natural products and nutritional supplements. Nutritional education is the basis for good health and good business.

Just look at how Mc Donald’s is shifting their strategy with a health McMakeover. They’re downplaying the burger joint and featuring “healthy” fare with oatmeal and smoothies. That’s a sure sign that health is impacting markets and oh, by the way, McDonald’s third quarter earnings rose 9% with revenues up14%.

Naturally the food packaging industry is all over this health trend too. They want to “simplify” nutrition information on package  labels for us. Look for new icons and happy face logos to help obscure the chemicals involved in processed “food”.

We’re seeing the myth that fast food is cheaper than fresh fruits and veggies shatter before our very eyes.

We’re bearing witness to a massive shift in social awareness and morality joining forces to expose deceit and corruption wherever they steal our birthright of good health. There will be plenty of fear, anger, frustration and cynicism to go around.

There will also be a huge demand for guidance. As a natural product retailer your profitable future lies in the time you take to educate these new shoppers about the value and benefits of good nutrition. Educating them builds trust and trust is in short supply right now. Nature works. Nutrition is powerful. It’s easy, engaging and effective. That’s your edge. That’s what Nutrition News has done successfully since 1976.

How many new customers are just waiting for your invitation? How long would it take you to reaching out at $0.50/month before you acquired a new customer? How long do your customers shop with you? What is the lifetime dollar value of your customers?

If your customers stay on average ten years and they shop twice a month and they spend $50, that’s $1200 per year and $12,000 in ten. How many times can you invest $0.50/month to yield $1200 per year?

That’s the N.I.Q. dividend (Nutritional Intelligence Quotient)  waiting for you to cash in on. Remember, relevance plus relationships yields results. Customers who know more, buy more and they buy more often! Health Works! Adapt or Die.

Give us a call and we’ll be happy to brainstorm with you about where your future new customers are . . . . . right now!

John Gay, NPA’s executive director and CEO, contacted Health Canada’s Minister of Health, Leona Aglukkaq, writing that “The dietary supplement industry is, indeed, federally regulated in ways that ensure quality and safety.” Gay’s letter to Aglukkaq explained the current regulatory system in place, including how the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and other agencies such as the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) all have a hand in the federal oversight of dietary supplements, including safety, manufacturing, labeling and advertising of these products.

“With this expansive regulatory structure, and with extensive self-regulatory efforts, the U.S. supplement industry has an enviable safety record,” said Gay. “We respectfully request that you review and amend that statement to correctly reflect the U.S. regulatory structure for supplements.”

After reviewing the correct information provided by NPA, Aglukkaq replied that the erroneous statement had been removed from Health Canada’s website, www.hc-sc.gc.ca, including the site’s FAQ section.

“It is very important that the public get accurate information about the regulation of our industry, particularly from governmental sources,” Gay said. “We at NPA want to thank Min. Aglukkaq and Health Canada for their prompt action in response to our request to correct the misinformation.”

Read the letter from NPA to Health Canada

Read the reply from Health Canada to NPA

I'll Take Organic For $200 Alex.

Apparently that was a question posed in more than one educational seminar at Expo West recently in Anaheim. Vicky Uhland blogged about this and a variety of responses from industry veterans all point to the fact that education is the third rail for the natural products industry after diet, exercise and nutritional supplements.

The growth of the industry  vertically and across market segments points out the incredible return on investment in education. The growth also points out the incredible opportunities when contrasted with the sharp number of complaints lodged against the nutritional products category, according to the Better Business Bureau.

Education and sharing what we learned helped us get mainstream. Now let’s take it to the next level and create a health literacy we can use to create actual health reform instead of a ‘fix, change or survive for profit’ model we seem stuck with.