USDA announces timeframe for adopting hemp regulations

TOP STORY
USDA announces timeframe for adopting hemp regulations Under the new farm bill, states and Indian tribes have the option to primarily regulate the production of hemp. That’s provided USDA approves their plans. But states and Indian tribes don’t need to submit their hemp plans to USDA until the agency adopts its regulations regarding production of the crop. The agency announced last week its plans to promulgate regulations in fall 2019 regarding the commercial production of industrial hemp in the United States. The new bill solved the long debate about the legality of commercial hemp-based product by allowing farmers to grow the crop and marketers to sell the products without interference from the Drug Enforcement Administration.
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UNPA NEWS
UNPA members' meeting: tomorrow at Expo West UNPA's annual Expo West Members' Meeting and Open House and Meet & Greet is tomorrow, Wednesday, March 6, from 8-10am, at the Anaheim Hilton & Towers Avalon Ballroom. No charge to attend and morning refreshments will be served! Join us!

UNPA cohosts "Insidious: How synthetic biology threatens your natural ingredient supply chain," tomorrow at Expo West Along with five other organizations, UNPA is cohosting this one-hour education session at Expo West—immediately following the UNPA Open House/Meet & Greet. Click on the link to learn more and RSVP. There is no charge to attend!


Registration now open for the 2019 UNPA Members' Retreat! The retreat agenda has now been posted. Bring additional team members and save $500 off their registration. Register today and reserve your hotel room for UNPA's annual Members' Retreat, April 30 - May 2, in Charleston, S.C. The above link will provide more information and access to the registration form. See you in Charleston in late April!

REGULATORY
FDA Commissioner Gottlieb resigns Food and Drug Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, who used his post to tackle difficult public health issues from youth vaping to opioid addiction – surprising early skeptics worried about his drug industry ties – resigned Tuesday, effective in about a month.

HEMP/CBD
FDA plans meeting in April on new CBD regulations Retiring FDA Commissioner Scott Gottlieb, M.D., said the agency is planning a public meeting in April to initiate a rule-making procedure on CBD. The goal is to create an appropriately efficient and predictable regulatory framework for regulating CBD products. A UNPA member memo last week provided some background on this complex set of issues and the topic will also be the subject of a member conference call later this month to provide details following discussions at Natural Products Expo West.

CBD can be made with genetically engineered microbes, aka yeast Bioengineered microscopic fungi (aka yeast) can produce both THC and CBD, meaning scientists can now grow—and engineer—synthetic cannabinoids in a lab. This has huge implications; firstly, extracting THC and CBD in this way is significantly cheaper than conventional methods; secondly, scientists can bioengineer THC and CBD to have specific, targeted effects, such as high levels of relaxation.

CBD: Myths vs. science With the extensive buzz surrounding CBD, phytocannabinoids and hemp, companies selling these products, websites discussing their use, regulatory agencies, experts and even people lacking credible expertise all have opinions and are sharing their views on this group of nutraceuticals. The result is an interesting mix of myths and science; this article provides clarity on several important issues.

REGULATORY
FTC said supplement marketer paid for fake reviews on Amazon FTC announced its case against New York-based Cure Encapsulations Inc. and its owner, Naftula Jacobowitz, was the first one “challenging a marketer’s use of fake paid reviews" on an independent retail website. The court order said the company made false and unsubstantiated claims for its Garcinia cambogia supplement on its Amazon product page, including through the purchased reviews.

CANNABIS
AOAC to launch Cannabis Analytical Science  Program AOAC INTERNATIONAL is launching a new program, Cannabis Analytical Science Program, for the analysis of cannabis and hemp in food, feed, plant materials or other substances, in conjunction with the AOAC Midyear Meeting in March 2019, at which time initial CASP priorities will be identified.

KRATOM
Poison reports related to herbal drug kratom soar, new study says Poisonings reported from taking kratom, an herbal drug sold over the counter, have soared as the substance has become an increasingly popular treatment for opioid withdrawal and addiction. Phone calls about kratom exposures to poison control centers nationwide skyrocketed by more than 50-fold from 13 in 2011 to 682 in 2017, according to a new study published in Clinical Toxicology.

TRADE
Why the U.S. government is pro-global trade and how it can help your brand Government officials actually do want companies to sell to a global consumer base. This article discusses the civil servants and organizations that stand ready to help, encourage and partner with companies wanting to offer Made in the USA brands to a global consumer base.

RETAIL
Whole Foods Magazine’s 2019 annual retailer survey During Whole Foods Magazine’s latest survey period of July 2017 to June 2018, Amazon’s acquisition of Whole Foods Market was causing angst; competition from mass marketers was intensifying; there was a sense of opportunity surrounding CBD and hemp-based products; and a general consumer trend toward wellness and transparency -- all of which bodes well for natural products retailers.

M&A ACTIVITY
NCN Transaction Database records 443 transactions for first half of 2018 Transaction activity in the nutrition, health and wellness industry leveled off in the first half of 2018 after four years of dramatic growth, with the number of mergers and acquisitions down 10 percent, according to the Nutrition Capital Network Transaction Database. Total transactions—both M&As and financings—tallied 443 in the first half of 2018 compared to 908 in 2017, a decline of 2 percent this year using an annualized rate based on first half data.

COMMENTARY
Bodybuidling.com VP on DSHEA: Changes that could improve supplement regulation Bodybuilding.com’s John Venardos shares some of his ideas to improve the regulation of the dietary supplements industry, from better transparency to greater FDA staff accountability, and how to level the playing field.

MICROBIOME
New study shows gut bacteria can control our genes and development Bacteria in our guts may be impacting human health and disease by telling host genes what to do, say researchers from Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine, who uncovered a new mechanism by which our microbiome communicates with and controls the DNA of our own cells.

Nutritional therapies should not neglect the microbiome, researchers warn Nutrition solutions for critically ill patients should not ignore the potential of modulating gut bacteria for health, say researchers from the University of Louisville, who suggest current enteral feeding solutions do not support gut defenses and the microbiome.

Defining and regulating medical nutrition: Study calls for harmonized approach Medical nutrition terminology is not consistently defined. There are frequent inconsistencies between definitions and regulations relating to specific terms and practices, warn researchers from Maastricht University in the Netherlands, who argue that standardized terminology is needed.

PEOPLE
CRN announces departure of Duffy Mackay, N.D. Duffy MacKay, ND, senior VP, scientific & regulatory affairs, will depart from CRN on March 15 and will be taking a position with CV Sciences Inc., as its senior VP of scientific and regulatory affairs. Andrew Shao, Ph.D., who previously led CRN’s science and regulatory team will step in to serve as interim senior VP, scientific & regulatory affairs.OMEGA-3s

Why some studies haven’t reported omega-3s heart health benefits Dietary intake, supplement dosage and comorbidities are three factors that can be overlooked when trying to determine omega-3's effects on cardiovascular disease, says a professor from the University of Western Australia.

ORGANICS
Court advances Organic Trade Association’s organic animal welfare lawsuit The Organic Trade Association hailed a ruling by the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia that it presented solid arguments regarding USDA's failure to put into effect new organic livestock standards that caused harm to the organic sector. The association now has the legal standing to contest the agency's withdrawal of the rule.

PACKAGING
Packaging takeaways Consumers demand almost as much from the packages that hold their foods and supplements as they do from the products themselves. Packages must clearly communicate product attributes, must not harm the environment and must stand out among the sea of competitors on store shelves or in online searches.

UNPA MEMBER COMPANY NEWS
Whole Foods set to open 500th store Whole Foods Market is nearing a milestone with the opening of its 500th store. The Austin, Texas-based specialty grocer said that on April 5 it plans to open a 70,000-sq.-ft., multilevel store in midtown Atlanta, which it described as a flagship location for the Southern region.

LifeVantage takes a lesson from Uber and Airbnb Network marketing company LifeVantage is leveraging a partnership with the Real Salt Lake soccer team to help build a model in which it connects customers with its distributors in much the same way as Uber and Airbnb links up service providers with customers.

Alkemist Labs confirms Shagandha Ashwagandha Root Extract from Sabinsa complies with USP monograph Shagandha Ashwagandha Root Extract 2.5-percent USP from Sabinsa Corp. complies with the U.S. Pharmacopoeia-National Formulary (USP-NF) monograph. Sabinsa chose Alkemist Labs to test the ingredient and confirm it meets the USP monograph, noting that with ashwagandha sales growth in the double digits, extra caution in sourcing has become crucial to guard against adulteration.

Sabinsa appoints Lori Diez as sales manager for Texas Sabinsa has named Lori Diez as its new sales manager - Texas. Diez joins Sabinsa with 12 years of experience as a diabetes care specialist in specialty pharmaceutical sales for a large international manufacturer, where she was instrumental in growing product brands, as well as building strong business relationships with physicians and members of the primary care industry.

MARKETING
What happened when these brands put ‘women-owned’ on their products In the wake of the #MeToo movement, the more than 20-year-old "women-owned" certification now has its own logo—and research shows it might be boosting sales. The “certified women-owned” logo is now present on around 200 products and additionally makes a business eligible for supply-chain diversity programs under which big companies hire women- and minority-owned businesses.

MARKET RESEARCH
Gen Z will have 'seismic' impact on the food industry prioritizing convenience and functionality The oldest of Generation Z ( now aged 12-22) is just entering adulthood and will have a profound impact on the packaged food and food service industries. But it will also be the hardest audience for food marketers to reach, predicts market researcher the NPD Group.

RESEARCH
Meta-analysis supports joint health potential of collagen A new meta-analysis from Mexican scientists supports the potential of collagen to improve joint health and reduce symptoms of osteoarthritis.

Nutrigenomic study underlines blueberries’ blood pressure lowering abilities Phytochemicals responsible for blueberries’ color may also play a role in lowering blood pressure, according to a study that used metabolomics and nutrigenomic techniques.

Can CoQ10 be more bioavailable? Researchers explore a novel delivery format A new study suggests that CoQ10 delivered in a novel time-release technology helps increase the ingredient’s bioavailability.

New review adds to growing body of evidence that vitamin K2 should be taken with calcium A new review published in Frontiers in Cardiovascular Medicine examines the impact of calcium supplementation on bone and cardiovascular health, and the role vitamin K2 may play in proper calcium utilization in the body.

New studies uncover probiotics influence on sperm quality Recent studies revealing a probiotic's ability to manage male sub-fertility with co-existing chronic pain and obesity, will significantly boost scientific interest in probiotics for infertility treatment, according to research presented by Denmark’s Aalborg University at the recent Probiota conference.

Korean research links hydrangea extract to beauty from within properties Researchers in South Korea explored the effects of ingesting hydrangea extract on skin health. They found a correlation between ingesting the extract and suppressed damage caused by ultraviolet B.

FDA WARNING LETTERS & GUIDANCES
Current FDA enforcement actions and guidances Keep up to date on FDA’s current enforcement actions, including general warning letters, recall information and GMP compliance issues, with this link to FDA's website. 
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Search and sign up for a variety of FDA Guidances.