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FDA ANNOUNCES
PLAN TO ELIMINATE VITAMIN COMPANIES By Byron J. Richards, CCN
June 27, 2007
NewsWithViews.com
The FDA, emboldened by its transformation
into a drug company, has embarked upon an anti-American plan
of interfering with business and intentionally eliminating various
dietary supplement companies from the market. The FDA announcement
came on Friday, June 22, 2007 under the guise of a final rule
for dietary supplement good manufacturing practices (CGMPs).
Within this 800 page rule the FDA states, “We find that
this final rule will have a significant economic impact on a
substantial number of small entities.... Establishments with
above average costs, and even establishments with average costs,
could be hard pressed to continue to operate. Some of these
may decide it is too costly and either change product lines
or go out of business.... 140 very small [less than 20 employees]
and 32 small dietary supplement manufacturers [less than 500
employees] will be at risk of going out of business.... costs
per establishment are proportionally higher for very small than
for large establishments....The regulatory costs of this final
rule will also discourage new small businesses from entering
the industry.”
This FDA rule will directly raise
the price of dietary supplements for all consumers. The FDA
acknowledges this and says “We expect that the majority
of these costs will be borne by consumers of dietary supplements,
who will likely respond to the increase in prices by reducing
consumption.” Thus, the FDA is intentionally seeking to
shrink the size of the dietary supplement industry and reduce
the influence of safe and effective options to improve the dreadful
trend in the health of Americans. The goal is to leave toxic
drugs as the primary health option.
Independent analysis of this FDA
rule has placed cost of compliance at 10 fold what the FDA estimates
with as many as 50% of small companies unable to comply.
The gutless cowards of Congress,
a majority of whom are on the Big Pharma payroll or will be
on it once they leave Congress, have delegated their lawmaking
powers granted by the U.S. Constitution to a bunch of Big Pharma-friendly
unelected bureaucrats at the FDA, who are in turn using this
power to undermine free commerce and help Big Pharma eliminate
competition from the market. This is the behavior of a government
in tyranny, inviting a revolution by the people. It is noteworthy
that fascist governments of the past have eliminated health
freedom and health options as a necessary condition to enslave
and brainwash a population. Congress has delegated its responsibility
to the people to such an extent that over half the laws in this
country are now concocted by unelected bureaucrats with vested
interests.
A Vehicle for Unprecedented Harassment
Any company that can afford to
comply with the costs and regulations of this new FDA rule can
be targeted and eliminated at will by the FDA. In essence, the
FDA is seeking to make the dietary supplement industry document
every phase of production, including expensive testing at multiple
points in the production process. Massive recordkeeping will
be required, including all customer complaints and returns for
any reason! This is utterly draconian and unnecessary interference
and burden to free commerce. It is completely Anti-American.
No doubt, the FDA will impose user fees as an additional charge
so that FDA agents will have the funding required to enforce
the regulations. Under the new rule any flaw in bookkeeping
can result in a company’s products being declared adulterated,
allowing the FDA to remove them from the market even though
nothing is wrong with them! A company can then be forced out
of business because they won’t be able to sell any products
to raise the money to comply. The rules are so complex and vague
that the FDA can selectively target any company it chooses,
even those attempting to comply in good faith.
The FDA is doing this under the
pretense of improved consumer safety. Consumer safety could
readily be guaranteed by simply having all companies test their
final products for purity and potency. Instead of this simple
approach the FDA has gone to the extreme of burdening the dietary
supplement industry with regulations in excess of the drug industry!
Supplements are foods, not drugs. The food industry couldn’t
begin to comply with these FDA rules, even though food contamination
is far more dangerous to health than dietary supplements.
The FDA intends to phase this rule
in over the next three years. This means that within five years
half the industry and many of the health options individuals
rely on will either be gone or significantly more expensive.
Even more chilling is that forces
within the dietary supplement industry itself are in no small
part responsible for this FDA final rule.
Trade Groups and their Big Companies
Turn on America
The Natural Products Association
(formerly the National Nutritional Food Association –
NNFA) and the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) have been
instrumental in forcing these drug-like rules on dietary supplements.
These globalist organizations are selling out America, destroying
American jobs, undermining the U.S. Constitution, and working
in conjunction with pharmaceutical companies to usher in Codex
and the New World Order. Consumers of dietary supplements should
learn who these companies are before buying their products and
helping to inadvertently fund the destruction of health freedom
in this country.
When DSHEA was passed in 1994 part
of that law required the FDA to establish current good manufacturing
practices (CGMPs) for the dietary supplement industry. During
a period of FDA outreach to the industry the FDA was surprised
to learn that CRN and NPA were in favor of drug-like CGMPs for
the dietary supplement industry. These trade groups, working
closely with Senators Orin Hatch (R-UT) and Tom Harkin (D-IA),
have intentionally taken the supplement industry down a slippery
slope. It is noteworthy that Hatch takes in more money from
Big Pharma than he does from dietary supplement companies. Not
only is Hatch a big supporter of the Medicare Part D drug rip
off of Americans he has saved Big Pharma billions by protecting
them from generic competition, as he is currently attempting
to do with his legislation for new biologic drugs. Hatch also
has a son working for NPA and another son that lobbies for NPA
and the dietary supplement industry. When Hatch leaves the Senate
he will be first in line for a six or seven figure Big Pharma
salary.
The CRN has been taken over by
multinational drug and food companies. Key players are the nutritional
divisions of Bayer, BASF, Cargill, Monsanto, Wyeth, and Archer
Daniels Midland. Nutrition companies that participate are in
most cases owned by pharmaceutical companies, heavily invested
in pharmaceutical companies, or jockeying for position in the
international market as part of the New World Order. Key names
include Mannatech, Shaklee, Herbalife, GNLD International, The
Vitamin Shoppe, and GNC. These companies are glad to eliminate
competition from small companies and start up ventures.
Carrying on the general theme of
Big Pharma ownership and a globalist agenda are the companies
that control the NPA. One need only look at the new NPA China
board to understand who these key players are. Jarrow Formulas,
Now Foods, GNC, and Herbalife top the list. At the end of 2006
Jarrow and Now helped lead the charge with Senators Hatch and
Harkin to burden the dietary supplement industry with bizarre
Adverse Event Reporting legislation (AER) which insisted that
dietary supplement companies keep extensive records on any type
of consumer complaint. Aspects of this AER law are now implemented
in the FDA final rule on CGMPs. Of course, NPA was quick to
offer expensive training to its members to indoctrinate them
into how to comply with the rules that NPA, working on behalf
of the FDA, just forced on its own members. Are their member
companies really this stupid? Or are they all working together?
I would recommend that any NPA member that believes itself to
be a true American company that values our constitution immediately
withdraw from NPA membership – consumers will be looking
to see who you are.
The picture is now crystal clear
for any person who cares to look. Numerous dietary supplement
companies are anti-American and actively selling out our country
and our constitution, working hand-in-glove with the FDA and
Big Pharma. The majority of such companies can be found as members
of CRN and NPA. It will be up to the American consumer to save
the dietary industry from itself and preserve their own access
to safe and effective natural health remedies. This is a relatively
simple task. Quit buying products from or quit being a distributor
in these fascist organizations. Support the small companies
that are the backbone of America, otherwise they will soon be
extinct.
Update on S.1082 Threat to Dietary
Supplements
Many of you have been following
the extreme threat to dietary supplements posed by S.1082. Similar
legislation has now cleared the House Energy and Commerce Committee
and is headed for the floor of the House in the next week or
two. The House version of this bill now contains the “food
and food ingredients” language that the FDA can use to
apply drug-related risk/benefit analysis to dietary supplements
and have them removed from the market at their whim.
It is noteworthy that both CRN
and NPA have posted on their websites information stating that
S.1082 is not a threat to dietary supplements. Both organizations
are flat out wrong. They cite a colloquy by Hatch, Harkin, Kennedy,
and Enzi as their evidence. This colloquy was a direct result
of our grassroots campaign to alert the American consumer to
this major threat. In no way does this colloquy protect dietary
supplements. UNTIL THE LANGUAGE IN THE BILL IS CHANGED THE THREAT
EXISTS AND IS VERY REAL.
CRN and NPA also tell their members
that the Codex initiative to scare consumers into thinking that
dietary supplements are unsafe above miniscule amounts and need
to be regulated by international laws is also no big deal. It
is clear that CRN and NPA, again working hand-in-glove with
the FDA, are a major part of the problem and are actively engaged
in forwarding the globalist agenda of the New World Order. While
pretending to represent the dietary supplement industry these
organizations are in fact shooting the industry in the back
and undermining health options for Americans.
The FDA is Out of Control
The FDA is a tyrannical organization
that is now emboldened and completely out of control. It is
not surprising that the FDA is seeking to eliminate competition
to Big Pharma, they have been doing that for much of the past
century. What is surprising is that they are openly stating
in their final rule a plan that directly eliminates small businesses
from existence. This fascist organization believes itself to
be above the rule of law and is actively working against America
and the rights of Americans. It must be stopped.
