Virgo Announces Details of SupplySide West 2004 Education Program

“This year’s SupplySide West Education Program promises to be one of the best ones yet based on the expertise of the speakers and relevance of topics to our industry colleagues,” said David Eckert, vice president, North America, Cognis Nutrition & Health.  “We are proud to be working with Virgo in sponsoring an educational platform that promotes scientific research, fosters product innovation and addresses pressing industry issues.” 

Highlights include:

Jeffrey Blumberg, Ph.D., and Susan Walker, M.D., to be Featured Speakers

Dr. Walker, director of the Division of Dietary Supplement Programs, Food and Drug Administration (FDA) will present on Friday, Oct. 1, from 8 to 8:50 a.m. Immediately following Dr. Walker’s presentation, Dr. Blumberg will present “Forging New Strategies in Preventive Nutrition: Reaching Regulators, Health Care Professionals and Consumers” He is a senior scientist at the Jean Mayer USDA Human Nutrition Research Center on Aging and a professor in the Friedman School of Nutrition Science and Policy at Tufts University.

Office of Dietary Supplements (ODS), National Institutes of Health (NIH) to Present Three-part Series of Seminars
On Wednesday, Sept. 29, several ODS speakers will discuss the “Progress and Promise” of the Dietary Supplement Research Centers Program.  Topics to be addressed include the purpose and plan of the program, the tools for botanical research, and current research on black cohosh, turmeric, St. John’s wort and echinacea.

AOAC to Examine Methods Validation
With FDA indicating GMPs may be released before the end of 2004, the need for validated methods is becoming a higher priority. Hear from a panel of industry leaders about the status of methods validation for the following ingredients: ephedra, beta-carotene, glucosamine, chondroitin sulfate, ginkgo, saw palmetto, St. John's wort, lycopene, vitamin E, CoQ10, ginseng, cranberry, licorice, aloe, omega-3 fatty acids and many more.

Learn About Opportunities and Challenges of Doing Business in China
This session is designed to discuss many facets of doing business in China, from the emerging market for sales and cost effective manufacturing to intellectual property protection, perceived and actual quality issues, and more.

Humana Executive to Discuss Health Care and Supplement Use 
Samuel D. Benjamin, M.D., corporate medical director of integrative health strategies for Humana will speak on Thursday, Sept. 30, on the future of nutritional supplement use and health benefit providers.

Speaker to Review Product Recall Procedures  
Brian Williams, director of marketing for NNC Group, will analyze the series of challenges involved in recalling product including issues surrounding staff, processes and technologies necessary to support a nationwide recall.

Two Sessions Dedicated to Anti-Aging Topics
On Friday, Oct. 1, Ronald Klatz, M.D., president of the American Academy of Anti-Aging Medicine Inc. (A4M) will present a session titled “Management of Global Greying via Human Growth Factors”. A panel discussion on “Anti-Aging and the Personal Care Category” will follow Dr. Klatz’s presentation. Speakers from Aveda, EuroPharma and Carrington Laboratories will participate on the panel.   

Additional organizations presenting at the SupplySide West event include the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), National Nutritional Foods Association (NNFA), Natural Marketing Institute (NMI), University of Arizona, Ohio State University Medical Center, National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences and more.

A complete list of speakers and seminars is available at www.supplysideshow.com .

The SupplySide West exhibit hall will have more than 680 booths. More information about SupplySide West 2004, including registration and an exhibitor listing, is available at www.supplysideshow.com, or by calling Virgo Publishing at (800) 454-5760 or (480) 990-1101.

Virgo Publishing Inc. produces the SupplySide Trade Shows and Conferences, the Focus on the Future Executive Conference and Retreat, and the online training Web site nutrilearn.com; and publishes Natural Products Industry INSIDER, low carb retailer and HSR: Health Supplement Retailer magazines.

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