Sabinsa Worldwide President Shaheen Majeed delivered a presentation discussing some of the complexities of the supply chain at the Expo West Engredea tradeshow in Anaheim, California on March 10, 2018.

The educational session, Exploring Complex Biotech Issues in the Food & Nutrition Supply Chain, featured Mr. Majeed as one of several prominent industry leaders. The session attracted more than 75 industry members, including suppliers, marketing companies, media, retailers, and manufacturers.

Mr. Majeed, after describing Sabinsa, listed supply chain challenges such as climate variability and plant extract adulteration. He outlined the types of adulterants, such as substandard commercial mixtures, unidentified synthetics, substitution of species from the same family, providing the wrong part plant, substitution due to same constituent actions, and fortification with unidentified substances to create the appearance of high potency.

He went on to defend the needs and rights of farmers, saying that while synthetic biology has a place, the right for consumers to know what they are getting is a high priority, and for Sabinsa, identifying products clearly and accurately is undoubtedly the need of the hour.

The answer to these challenges, Mr. Majeed said, relies upon everyone in the room and the industry. Ingredient buyers are asking more and more right questions. There is value in being aligned with trade groups that are concerned for ingredients, marketing companies, retailers and consumers. Transparency is key, and companies should share information about test methodologies, and their regulatory compliance. Companies must be open to and conduct audits, from manufacturing facilities to farms like those that grow ingredients for Sabinsa. He also highlighted the importance of product education.

Mr. Majeed’s “call to action” included the reminder that trust is truly built over time and that companies should be ethically bound to both nature and to how they nurture their business.