Editorial Advisory Board

Nutritional Outlook’s Editorial Advisory Board is a distinguished group of thought leaders with expertise in the field of dietary supplements, healthy foods/beverages, nutrition, and natural products. Editorial Advisory Board members help our editors serve our audience by identifying key industry trends, developments, and insights.

Kevin M. Bell
Partner
Arnall Golden Gregory LLP

Kevin Bell is a partner in the Washington, DC, office of Arnall Golden Gregory LLP and leader of the firm’s Patent and Dietary Supplements industry practices. He specializes in strategic counseling U.S. and multinational companies and litigating intellectual property, unfair competition, and regulatory disputes before federal courts and agencies such as the International Trade Commission, FDA, FTC, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and the National Advertising Division (NAD) of the BBB National Programs. He is also actively involved in actions brought by state attorneys general offices as well as public policy issues brought before Congress and the White House. Bell has developed a substantial practice representing U.S. and international companies across a broad range of technologies that include biotech, pharmaceutical, medical device, dietary supplement, software, semiconductor, and computer science–related matters. Bell is considered a leading legal advisor in the dietary supplements and natural products industries. He is highly sought after by companies for his success in providing clients with global strategies to protect and enforce their intellectual property and execute complex regulatory-enforcement efforts in the U.S. and abroad. He has also developed a significant presence in the areas of cannabis and cannabidiol (CBD) related to regulatory, intellectual property, and legislative issues. He leads the firm’s cannabis/CBD industry team that provides clients with a broad range of legal expertise.

Judy Blatman
Founder and President
Judy Blatman Communications LLC

Judy Blatman has broad expertise as a communications professional having managed public relations/marketing programs for industries and companies ranging from dietary supplements to dog food, from liquor to aspirin, from luxury resorts to coffee. She specialized in building high-functioning communications departments and cost-effective, results-oriented initiatives. She worked extensively with journalists throughout her career and recently reversed roles, now working as a writer for Nutritional Outlook magazine. In January 2020, Blatman launched her own communications company focused on strategic communications counsel, writing, talent solutions, and message/media training, working with select clients with whom she shares a sense of humor and a mutual desire to solve problems or promote their businesses or products. For 16 years, she held a leadership position at the Council for Responsible Nutrition, where she oversaw and executed strategic communications efforts, including a rapid-response program and an award-winning, five-year, $5 million consumer education campaign. In 2018, she was the inaugural winner of the NutraIngredients-USA.com NutraChampion award in recognition of her work in the dietary supplement industry. In her spare time, she volunteers for the nonprofit Hero Dogs.

Mark Blumenthal
Founder and Executive Director
American Botanical Council

The American Botanical Council (ABC; Austin, TX) is a leading independent research and educational nonprofit organization dedicated to disseminating accurate, reliable, and responsible information on herbs and medicinal plants. Mark Blumenthal is editor and publisher of HerbalGram, an international peer-reviewed quarterly journal. For six years, he served as an adjunct associate professor of medicinal chemistry at the University of Texas at Austin, College of Pharmacy, teaching the course Herbs and Phytomedicines in Today’s Pharmacy. He is also the founder and director of the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Prevention Program, a nonprofit international consortium committed to researching and exposing adulteration and fraud in botanical ingredients sold in the global market. He has appeared on more than 400 radio and television shows and has written more than 500 articles, reviews, and book chapters for many major publications. He was awarded Natural Health Magazine’s Hall of Fame Award for “…opening America’s eye to the healing powers of herbs.” For more than 46 years, he has been a leader in the global botanical and natural products community, promoting science-based herbal education and respect for scientific and clinical research, ethnobotanical traditions, sustainable and regenerative practices, and honesty and authenticity in the manufacture and marketing of herbs and phytomedicines.

Scott Dicker
Market Insights Director
SPINS

Scott Dicker is a senior market insights analyst for SPINS (Chicago), a leading wellness-focused data company and advocate for the natural products industry. With a background in nutrition, he believes in the importance of making wellness options more accessible to everyone and that demystifying data can make that happen. By delving into omnichannel, comprehensive, market-wide data, he identifies emerging trends and explores shifting consumer behavior, helping retailers and brands better understand the market and their audience. Dicker has spoken at many leading industry events, including Natural Products Expo, SupplySide, and Plant Based World shows, plus many more, and he has been published in top industry resources such as Natural Products Insider, Nutritional Outlook, and Whole Foods Magazine. He has a longstanding involvement in nutrition and wellness, working as a sports nutritionist and starting multiple entrepreneurial businesses in the field.

Joseph Dowling
CEO
CV Sciences

Joseph Dowling was appointed CEO of CV Sciences (San Diego, CA) in May 2018 following four years of serving as CFO at the industry-pioneering company behind hemp-derived-CBD brand PlusCBD. As head of a wellness company, Dowling strongly believes in the power of plant-based and science-backed ingredients like CBD to support a happier, healthier life. To ensure consumers are informed and have access to safe, high-quality wellness products, Dowling leads an expert team of scientists, medical professionals, and operational leaders in the development and distribution of hemp-derived CBD products. In addition, under his leadership, CV Sciences is developing a first-of-its-kind CBD-based treatment for smokeless tobacco addiction. Prior to entering the wellness space, Dowling held executive positions in the biotech and finance industries. Dowling graduated from the University of California, Los Angeles, with a degree in economics, and is a certified public accountant.

John R. Endres, ND
Chief Scientific Officer
AIBMR Life Sciences Inc.

Since 2006, John Endres has been chief scientific officer for AIBMR Life Sciences Inc. (Seattle, WA), a leading scientific and regulatory consulting firm that specializes in Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) work. He heads a highly experienced team comprising naturopathic physicians and library information specialists. He is the author or coauthor of several peer-reviewed academic publications and book chapters and is a frequent contributing author for the natural products industry trade journals. Endres received a baccalaureate degree in German and philosophy from the State University of New York at Albany and the Julius-Maximilians-Universität in Würzburg, Germany. In 2004, he earned a board-certified doctorate degree in naturopathic medicine from Bastyr University in Seattle, WA. He is licensed as a primary care physician in Washington State. At Bastyr University, in collaboration with the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, Endres conducted research screening complex botanical extracts for their ability to inhibit the growth of a variety of cancer cell lines. He is a full member of the Society of Toxicology and the monitoring scientist for AIBMR’s studies to support the safety of food ingredients.

Daniel Fabricant, PhD
President and CEO
Natural Products Association

Daniel Fabricant, PhD, is executive director and CEO of the Natural Products Association (NPA; Washington, DC), the nation’s largest and oldest trade organization representing the natural products industry, including dietary supplements, foods, personal care products, and more. He is responsible for implementing board policy for the advancement and protection of the natural products industry while overseeing every aspect of the association’s programs and activities. Most recently, Fabricant served as the director of the Division of Dietary Supplement Programs at the U.S. FDA, where for more than three years he directed agency policy, public affairs, and regulatory action regarding regulation of the dietary supplement industry. While with the agency, he successfully navigated the large, heavily matrixed governmental organizational structure to bring life to a regulatory function that was nonexistent for almost 20 years. Prior to joining FDA, Fabricant was vice president, global government and scientific affairs, for NPA, responsible for establishing and leading industry coalitions dealing with a range of legislative, regulatory, and scientific matters. Fabricant carried his interest in natural products into the classroom, earning a PhD in pharmacognosy from the University of Illinois at Chicago, where he has served as an adjunct professor in the Department of Medicinal Chemistry and Pharmacognosy since 2009.

David Foreman, RPh
Founder and President
Herbal Pharmacist

David Foreman, RPh, is the founder and president of Herbal Pharmacist® Media and is known globally as “The Herbal Pharmacist®”. He is a graduate of the University of South Carolina College of Pharmacy, and he owned and operated a Medicine Shoppe pharmacy in Virginia. Foreman’s background in natural health and pharmacy led him to create his “4 Pillars of Health” program centered on diet, exercise, spirituality, and supplementation, and to publish his first book, titled Four Pillars of Health: Heart Disease. Foreman travels the world teaching consumers, healthcare providers, and professionals about his philosophy on how to achieve and maintain good health. During the past 25 years, he hosted the popular “Herbal Pharmacist®” show both in syndication (15 years) and on Sirius/XM (2 years). Foreman continues to share his knowledge about health with both B2B industry members and the end-consumer through multimedia platforms, serving as a guest speaker on television and radio programs, conferences, and international webcasts. In addition, he has authored dozens of books and articles. He is also a resource for continuing education and has been a guest speaker at universities and medical conferences on a wide range of health topics, including integrative medicine. Foreman currently consults for many of the industry’s leading raw material suppliers, helping them break down their clinical research and make the information understandable to those at all levels of education. Lastly, he is now using his vast knowledge in biochemistry and physiology to help companies formulate new and cutting-edge finished products combining clinically substantiated ingredients with innovative delivery methods.

Kimberly Kawa, BSc
Client Insights Manager
SPINS LLC

Kimberly Kawa is a consulting partner and wellness product specialist at The Movitz Group, a company that offers professional strategic guidance to innovative, early-stage food, beverage, and whole-body brands, as well as established consumer packaged goods brands, through the lens and framework of the natural products industry. Kawa started her career 15 years ago with a nutrition and dietetics degree from Northern Illinois University and has applied her passion for functional nutrition and community health along the way. From coordinating patient diet plans and supplement protocols at an integrative medicine facility to retail management at a Fruitful Yield healthfood store and product research and data analytics at SPINS LLC, Kawa has continued to stay well-informed of industry trends. Her focus lies in vitamins and supplements. She most recently volunteered her time updating presentations for a functional medicine certification program designed for practicing nutrition professionals looking to advance in this area.

Douglas “Duffy” MacKay, ND
Senior Vice President, Dietary Supplements
Consumer Healthcare Products Association

Douglas “Duffy” MacKay, ND, is senior vice president, dietary supplements, at the Consumer Healthcare Products Association (CHPA; Washington, DC). Prior to joining CHPA, he was senior vice president, scientific and regulatory affairs, for CV Sciences Inc., maker of PlusCBD. At CV Sciences, he was responsible for scientific and regulatory affairs functions that drove product quality, safety, and innovation. MacKay came to CV Sciences after a 10-year career with the Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) in Washington, DC, where he served as senior vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs. At CRN, he oversaw the scientific and regulatory affairs department, ensuring the association’s scientific, policy, and legislative positions were based on credible scientific rationale. MacKay serves as a member of the CRN Board of Directors, the American Botanical Council Advisory Board, and the Food and Drug Law Institute’s Cannabis-Derived Products Committee. In addition, he is an associate editor of the Journal of Dietary Supplements and serves on the editorial boards of Integrative Medicine: A Clinician’s Journal and the Natural Medicine Journal. MacKay earned his naturopathic medical degree from the National University of Natural Medicine in Portland, OR.

Michael McGuffin
President
American Herbal Products Association

Michael McGuffin is president of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA; Silver Spring, MD). In 2019, McGuffin celebrated his 20th anniversary as AHPA’s president. A leading expert on dietary supplement regulation, McGuffin has been published in scholarly and scientific journals and has represented the herbal industry at state and federal hearings on herbal regulatory issues. He has served as a member of FDA’s Food Advisory Committee Working Group on Good Manufacturing Practices for Dietary Supplements, FDA’s Food Advisory Committee’s Dietary Supplements Subcommittee, California’s Office of Environmental Health Hazard Analysis Food Warning Workgroup, and the advisory board of the USC School of Pharmacy Regulatory Science master’s degree program. He also serves on the boards of the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia, the American Association of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine, and United Plant Savers.

Susan Hazels Mitmesser, PhD
Vice President, Science and Technology
Pharmavite LLC

Susan Mitmesser provides scientific leadership at Pharmavite to advance innovation and new product development strategies and to ensure the scientific integrity of all products made under its brand portfolio. She has a passion for nutrition and wellness and leverages her ability to communicate scientific findings to consumers and the marketplace. She brings extensive experience in research and nutritional biochemistry across various industries and sectors, including food, dietary supplements, academia, and clinical settings. She serves on the editorial board of four peer-reviewed journals: Advance Journal of Food Science and Technology, Journal of Pediatric Intensive Care, World Journal of Clinical Pediatrics, and Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition. In addition, she has been published in many peer-reviewed journals and is a contributing author for book chapters relating to nutrition in adult and pediatric populations. Mitmesser is an active member of the American Society for Nutrition, the American Association for the Advancement of Science, and The New York Academy of Sciences. She also serves on the senior scientific advisory council of the Council for Responsible Nutrition. Currently, Mitmesser is an adjunct professor at the Department of Nutrition Sciences at the University of Connecticut and at the Gerald J. and Dorothy R. Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University. She holds a PhD in nutritional biochemistry from the University of Nebraska and a master’s degree from the University of Nebraska Medical Center.

George Paraskevakos, MBA
Executive Director
International Probiotics Association

George Paraskevakos, MBA, has been involved with the probiotic industry since 2007 when he served in various roles, from business development to account management, with a globally recognized probiotic producer. During this time, he also served on the International Probiotics Association’s (IPA) board of directors and had two mandates as IPA’s president before taking on the association’s leadership role as executive director in 2015. His passion for the probiotic industry is unequivocal, and his persistence to have IPA continue being “The Global Voice of Probiotics®” has taken the association from 40 members when he took on the role to now over 100 international companies under his tutelage. Paraskevakos represents the International Probiotics Association in the media, to all probiotic industry stakeholders (including government agencies and Codex), and in appearances at conventions, conferences, and other symposiums.

Irfan Qureshi, ND
Global Head of Product Development
Metagenics

Irfan Qureshi is vice president of product development and quality assurance for Healthy Directions. Previously, he was chief regulatory officer for Vitamin Research Products. He earned a bachelor’s degree in microbiology from the University of Washington as well as a degree in naturopathic medicine from Bastyr University. While attending Bastyr University, he pursued further training in South Asia, studying the indigenous Unani system of medicine. Upon graduation, Qureshi practiced naturopathic medicine in Singapore, where he became a noted health columnist for Singapore’s The Business Times. Previously, he also maintained a private medical practice in SeaTac, WA, specializing in chronic diseases and autism. Among his prior positions, Qureshi served as vice president of technical and regulatory affairs for AIBMR Life Sciences Inc., a natural products consulting firm. Qureshi is a frequent contributor to various industry trade journals. He has also served as author or coauthor of several peer-reviewed publications.

Harry B. Rice, PhD
Vice President, Regulatory and Scientific Affairs
Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s (GOED)

Harry B. Rice is the vice president of regulatory and scientific affairs for the Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega-3s (GOED) and the past vice president of regulatory and scientific affairs for the United Natural Products Alliance (UNPA). He has worked in the ingredient, dietary supplement, functional food, and consumer packaged goods industries for 20 years. His responsibilities for GOED include monitoring and reporting on regulatory issues, developing written comments and oral testimony to domestic and international government bodies to advance industry positions on critical health issues, and providing scientific analysis of the growing body of scientific literature. Prior to serving the industry as a trade representative, Rice spent over six years at Cargill Inc. involved in the development and execution of global regulatory and scientific strategies for a wide range of functional ingredients. Rice earned an MS and PhD in nutrition from The Pennsylvania State University and a BS in dietetics from Miami University (Ohio).

Kantha Shelke, PhD, CFS
Principal, Corvus Blue LLC
Senior Lecturer, Food Safety Regulations, Johns Hopkins University

Kantha Shelke, PhD, CFS, is founder and principal at Corvus Blue LLC (Chicago), a contract food science and research firm retained by food, dietary supplement, and allied enterprises, including professional and trade organizations, for strategic competitive intelligence, expert witness services, and rapid development and market realization of new products and technologies. Since 1986, she has been practicing and teaching food science and food safety regulations from end-to-end in food/supplement supply chains and food industry enterprises spanning the globe. A Certified Food Scientist and a Fellow of the Institute of Food Technologists, she serves on the Faculty Advisory Boards of Food and Agriculture at McGill University (Montreal) and Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine (Tempe, AZ). She is passionate about advancing the understanding of food science, nutrition, food law, and culinary arts with science and sensibility.

Paula Simpson, BSc (Nutritional Sciences), RNCP, R. Herbalist
Founder
Nutribloom

Paula Simpson is the founder of Nutribloom, an internationally recognized consulting firm specializing in innovation, product development, and branding within the nutricosmetic, natural beauty, and healthy-aging markets. Merging her scientific, natural health background along with 20+ years’ experience in formulation, clinical research/design, marketing, and regulations, Simpson has generated, from concept to shelf, some of the most successful wellness-focused beauty brands available in the market. Through this, she has solidified her reputation as a leading innovator and ambassador for the healthy aging and nutricosmetic sectors, being formally recognized as one of the most powerful women in the natural beauty industry today. She is a regularly sought-after industry expert, including previous engagements at the Vitafoods and SupplySide events as well as the Sustainable Cosmetics Summit. Simpson is also a top-tier media personality, with past appearances on E! News, Entertainment Tonight, Good Morning America, MSNBC, ABC, and FOX News. She regularly contributes her expertise to leading health and beauty publications and has authored multiple top industry journal and consumer-focused articles. Simpson is a microbiome expert and author of the highly rated book Good Bacteria for Healthy Skin: Nurture Your Skin Microbiome with Pre- and Probiotics for Clear and Luminous Skin (Ulysses Press).

Ashish Talati
Founding Member
Talati Law Firm

Ashish Talati leads Amin Talati & Wasserman’s FDA practice and is one of the industry’s foremost experts on FDA regulatory matters. Talati primarily counsels clients on matters of regulatory compliance, helping them anticipate and address regulatory issues in their day-to-day business operations and strategic planning. He also advocates on their behalf before the FDA, FTC, Customs, USDA, and other federal agencies. He is considered a leading authority in the areas of Generally Recognized as Safe (GRAS) requirements and New Dietary Ingredients (NDI). Considered a creative and strategic partner by his clients, Talati works with companies all over the globe and is a trusted advisor at every step of the product life cycle, including product formulation, safety and efficacy studies, product launch, and ongoing marketing and sales.

Brian Tanzer, MS
Director, Scientific & Regulatory Affairs
The Vitamin Shoppe Inc.

Brian Tanzer is the senior manager of scientific and regulatory affairs at The Vitamin Shoppe Inc., responsible for the research, formulation, and claims substantiation for all The Vitamin Shoppe brand products. Tanzer also provides regulatory guidance to cross-functional teams across the company. Prior to joining The Vitamin Shoppe, Tanzer spent four years at Reliance Vitamin Co. as head of research and technical services. Tanzer studied biology and chemistry at St. John’s University in New York. He has an MS in nutritional sciences from Brooklyn College, part of The City University of New York. Tanzer also spent several years as an adjunct instructor in the department of health and nutrition sciences at Brooklyn College and LaGuardia Community College, both of The City University of New York, teaching undergraduate and graduate courses in nutritional sciences and clinical nutrition.

John E. Villafranco
Partner
Kelley Drye & Warren LLP

John Villafranco is a partner in the advertising and marketing practice at Kelley Drye & Warren LLP (Washington, DC). Villafranco provides litigation and counseling services with a focus on advertising law matters and consumer protection. Named 2011 D.C. Advertising “Lawyer of the Year” by Best Lawyers, Villafranco is highly respected for offering comprehensive legal advice that emphasizes risk analysis and sound business practices for corporations involved in advertising and marketing. On the regulatory side, clients tell US Legal 500 he “consistently provides good advice and service.” An editor-in-chief of the American Bar Association’s (ABA) Consumer Protection Law Developments treatise and author of numerous articles on advertising law, Villafranco is an authority on a range of issues involving consumer protection law. He is past chair of the ABA Antitrust Section Consumer Protection Committee and past chair of the ABA Consumer Protection Conference (2007, 2009).

Lu Ann Williams
Global Insights Director
Innova Market Insights

Lu Ann Williams is cofounder and director of global insights at Innova Market Insights, a global market research firm headquartered in The Netherlands’ Food Valley. She manages a network of industry professionals and trend scouts in 80+ countries that contribute to Innova’s proprietary market intelligence platform and an analyst team that works with food, beverage, ingredient, and packaging companies on product development, marketing and strategies, and technology scouting. An expert on trends driving the food and beverage industry, she is a frequent speaker at industry events. She is originally from Augusta, GA, and has lived in Europe for the past 30 years. This, combined with extensive travel over this time, gives her a unique foundation for insights on what’s coming next in the industry in every region of the world.