Products made by Perrigo will be the first nutritional supplements to receive the new dietary supplements certificate launched by NSF International , the US-based supplier of risk-management services in public health and safety.
Perrigo claims to be the largest manufacturer of over-the-counter pharmaceutical and nutritional products in the US, and is the first retail brand to receive recognition in the NSF Dietary Supplements Certification Program.
The Perrigo Good Sense brand nutritional products that have been certified will be listed on the NSF consumer website and in NSF certified product listing books.
The NSF programme seeks to assist manufacturers in building credibility for their company and brands by providing independent testing and verification of quality for their products and processes.
To qualify for the certificate, products must pass the formulation reviews, plant audits and laboratory testing conducted by NSF to determine if products conform to its Draft American National Standard 173-Dietary Supplements.
Standard 173 was developed through a consensus process with participation from dietary supplement manufacturers, raw material suppliers, retailers, trade associations, academic researchers, public health practitioners and government officials. The standard provides methodology and evaluation criteria to verify ingredient identities and quantities. It also provides test criteria for specific contaminants and conformance to Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs).
"We feel the industry has lacked a meaningful benchmark in establishing a true definition of validating product quality and because the NSF programme is independent and based on consensus standards it offers the credibility that we are proud to support," said Scott Sensenbrenner, director of marketing for Perrigo Nutrition.
"The individual product certifications are the next logical step to follow our NSF GMP Registration for contract manufacturers, and continues to demonstrate our commitment to quality to our stakeholders including our retail partners and consumers," commented Mike Bradley, director of Nutritional Scientific Affairs at Perrigo of South Carolina.
"We congratulate Perrigo for taking a leadership position by obtaining NSF certification and GMP registration. This demonstrates a clear commitment to quality and to addressing consumer confidence," said Dr Dennis R. Mangino, president and chief executive officer of NSF.