Botanical Adulterants Program Changes Name to Emphasize Prevention

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The American Botanical Council (ABC; Austin, TX), along with the American Herbal Pharmacopoeia (AHP; Scotts Valley, CA), and the National Center for Natural Products Research (NCNPR; University, MS), announced that the new name of the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Program will now include the word “Prevention.” The new name of the program, effective as of January 10, is the ABC-AHP-NCNPR Botanical Adulterants Prevention Program (BAPP). ABC and its partner organizations said that the new name better reflects the program’s “purpose and intent.”

Mark Blumenthal, founder, executive director, ABC, director, BAPP, explained the name change in a press statement: “What we’ve been trying to do is alert industry members about specific botanical materials that we have confirmed as being adulterated, and counsel industry on the optimum laboratory analytical methods to help determine authenticity of botanical ingredients. By adding the word ‘Prevention’ to the name, we are making our intention clearer to all stakeholders.”

As the organizations noted in the press release, BAPP is an international consortium of nonprofit industry associations, along with laboratories, research centers, industry members and trade associations, and parties with interests in herbs and medicinal plants. The chief goals of the program include advising industry personnel, government agencies, and the media about adulteration in botanical ingredients for commercial sale. The organizations also state that to date, the program has received support or endorsements from over 200 U.S. and international parties.

Stefan Gafner, PhD, chief science officer, ABC, technical director, BAPP, added: “Our initiative strives to give members of the herb and dietary supplement industries the necessary tools to avoid being duped by suppliers of ingredients that have been accidentally or purposefully adulterated, so that products on the market are authentic and provide the benefits that consumers expect.”

So far, the program has published 38 peer-reviewed articles and educational tools. These include the organization’s Botanical Adulterants Bulletins, which are concise reviews of ingredient-specific adulteration; Laboratory Guidance Documents, developed with the aim of helping quality-control personnel choose the best techniques and methods for determining the extent of botanical adulteration; and Botanical Adulterants Monitor e-newsletters. All of these documents are available on the program’s website.