Healthy INSIDER Podcast

The Organic & Natural Health Association’s partnership with the Williams-Franklin Foundation will open more opportunities in the natural products industry for students and graduates of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCU). Specifically, Organic & Natural Health committed to help raise US$50,000 for the Williams-Franklin Foundation--a nonprofit that provides scholarships, networking and mentoring opportunities to HBCU students with extreme financial need--during the next five years. While Organic & Natural Health started the partnership, this is an industry-wide initiate.In this podcast, Karen Howard, CEO and executive director, Organic & Natural Health Association, and Brian Terry, national sales manager, Nordic Naturals, join Sandy Almendarez, senior content director, Informa Markets, to discuss the importance of this program and the beneficial ripple effects it will have to improve the natural products industry.

ToddCast Episode 5:The medicinal value of hemp CBD has been proven with FDA approval of a CBD isolate drug. Even so, the forces aligned against its widespread use remain. Sean Murphy, founder of Hemp Business Journal and now with WAFBA producing the NoCo Hemp Expo in Denver (and online) March 25-27, https://www.nocohempexpo.com/ talks with Insider senior editor Todd Runestad about:Murphy’s young son, Atlas, born with a terminal brain condition—and how, even in the cannabis capital of Colorado, he has been unable to legally use CBD to help. What the leading hemp companies are doing to stay ahead sustainably. The opportunities for hemp beyond medicinal—nutritional, textiles, biomaterials.

Health Equity & Advocacy Project (HEAP) just launched, its mission to educate and inspire Blacks and other melanin-challenged populations to get their vitamin D levels up to healthy. Their lives may depend on it.The merging of #BLM with COVID has created a moment where the Black community’s health outcomes with the pandemic is worse than most—as is vitamin D blood levels, and a slew of published research over the past year has shown at least a correlation between vitamin D deficiency and worse COVID-19 outcomes. Brian Terry, national sales manager at Nordic Naturals, saw opportunity. He sat down with Insider senior editor Todd Runestad to discuss:That an incredible 82% of Blacks are vitamin D deficient, compard to 63% Latinx and 31% White. What can vitamin D do to help peoples’ health status? Why supplementation is the only realistic solution. Terry is a Black man in a White industry. What has his experience been—are natural products people really full of peace and love?

The 54-store U.S. chain of sports nutrition stores has committed to an omnichannel solution from NewStore to modernize its operation and inventory management while delivering information and products in the many ways customers today demand. 5 Star’s chief marketing officer Jared LeMantia discusses what prompted this move, what is involved in transitioning to this new system, and how the customer experience will change.

When sports nutrition retail chain 5 Star Nutrition chose NewStore’s omnichannel cloud solution as its pathway to future growth and success, it was the company’s first foray into nutrition. NewStore’s chief commercial officer Rick Berger explains how mobile point of sale (POS) and cloud-based order management that have been changing fashion and sporting goods retailing can also transform nutrition retailers, who can run their stores from an iPhone.

ToddCast episode II: Sports nutrition has long been a hotbed of innovation. The first tubs of whey protein powders were originally used by body builders, but the conceit has diversified into plant proteins for anyone seeking a performance edge. Listen to this interview between senior editor Todd Runestad and sports nutrition innovator extraordinaire and president of Imaginutrition, Anthony Almada, as they discuss:How EAS turned on the pro sports world with creatine and other power boosters. Immunity supplements may be the new multivitamin, but can they also find a home in the sports nutrition aisle?How the latest sports ingredient, beta-alanine, increases exercise capacity—but is also an antioxidant and can enhance immunity.

BIPOC brand targets diabesity with plant-based powders. The company had been laser-focused on the Black population. With high-quality ingredients and GMP-certified production, this on-point brand was able to get a shot at the best big box retailer in the country. Watch CEO Claude Tellis and CMO Kareem Cook sit down with senior editor Todd Runestad as they discuss the challenges and sweet smell of success:The challenges and indignities of being a Black-owned company, which makes this deal all the sweeter. What success looks like now—sales figures, time horizons, new demographic markets opened, and flying over the hurdle of Costco’s No. 1 concern. How hoops legends Magic Johnson and Grant Hill—along with strong assists from a pair of women on the back end—have helped this company earn the spotlight.

ToddCast Vol. XXIX: Duffy MacKay has lived and breathed Washington, D.C., for a decade as senior vice president of scientific and regulatory affairs for the Council for Responsible Nutrition, a leading trade group serving the dietary supplements industry. Like so many other supplements veterans, he jumped ship and swam to the boisterous shores of hemp CBD land. MacKay sits down with Insider senior editor Todd Runestad to talk about the similarities between the last quarter-century of supplements and the last five of CBD, in particular as it relates to FDA regulation. Tune in as they discuss:How CBD companies don’t quite get that they are in the supplements business, not the marijuana business. Rules and regulations apply. Whether potential FDA commissioner in the Biden administration, David Kessler, has “evolved his thinking” from supplements enemy to hemp accepter if not promoter. Whether Congress can write laws to compel the FDA to stop its slow-dance of hemp CBD regulations. 

Marc Brush, principal at the Bend consultancy, honed his market research bona fides running Nutrition Business Journal. He’s helping shape the personalized healthcare and nutrition pursuit, is building the future of innovative immune-support products and brands, and has genius insights on the future of consumer demographics and market success. Listen in as Insider senior editor Todd Runestad sits down with Brush as they discuss:How to make personalization work in the market (hint: no one is there yet). As we enter the second year of the colds-and-flu season, has immunity supplements supplanted multivitamins as the foundation of health?Is influencer marketing really losing its luster? What then, then?

ToddCast Vol. XXVIII: COVID times are accelerating the health care paradigm, and the leading thinker on functional medicine and personalized nutrition is leading the charge. Immune boosting is so 20th century. Think immune rejuvenation. Think training your immune system like you would build muscle for fitness. Think of categorizing your immune function into immunity personalities. Insider senior editor Todd Runestad rethinks the future of nutrition with Dr. Jeffrey Bland, Ph.D., founder of the Personalized Lifestyle Medicine Institute and president of Big Bold Health. They discuss:The five categories of one’s immune system personality—angry, confused, sensitive, withdrawn and balanced—and nutrients that support each one. Bland’s serendipitous journey of discovery of the next great superfood (and crop for carbon times), Himalayan tartary buckwheat. What the future of health care and functional medicine looks like in 2050.

ToddCast Vol. XXVII: From Tonalin CLA to 5-Loxin, Aker krill to MenaQ7 vitamin K2, Eric Anderson has been at the forefront of marketing evidence-based, IP-protected ingredients to quality-forward responsible brands. Tune in as Anderson sits down with Insider senior editor Todd Runestad as they discuss: How to navigate a market with brands pirating ingredients and stifling innovation on one end and those that care about quality and evidence on the other.How to communicate all aspects of quality, from sustainable sourcing and clinically validated ingredients to lab test results. What the surge in immune products post-COVID looks like for consumers looking to support general wellness.

Market leaders are leading the market through diligence, innovation and new ways of thinking. You would expect anything less from the hemp biz? The last 10 months have changed our lives dramatically. Supply chains are being rewritten and remapped due to the pandemic. This is another opportunity to bring manufacturing to the agriculture center of production in this country because supply chains will require domestic supply because nobody wants supply disruption. How do we make sure we take care of the climate and take care of the sustainable story for the next 20 years? Senior editor Todd Runestad sits down with Simon Liegel, co-founder of Driftless Extracts, and Josh Hendrix, an established leader in the hemp industry sitting on major boards and managing BestBall CBD and Hendrix Holdings. They discuss: How brands can qualify a supplier—what to look for, what questions to ask. What kept the green rush from coming to fruition for many hemp farmers—and the opportunities that remain. How Wisconsin is looking past cannabinoids and driving hemp usage toward the grain and fiber angle—packaging, textiles, paper and other industrial applications. Traceabiliity. Sustainability. Verification. And other significant considerations.

ToddCast, Vol. XXV: Known in the trade as The Medicine Hunter, Chris Kilham travels the world over and really digs in with indigenous cultures to discover herbal remedies for the Western world—kava and maca being two preeminent herbs that Kilham was there at the start of both. During the COVID downtime, we caught up with Kilham resting comfortably just five miles from North America’s largest organic schisandra farm. Listen in to this podcast with senior editor Todd Runestad as Kilham discusses:As one of the world’s great longevity botanicals, why schisandra berry “really needs its day.”Differentiation among the three great adaptogenic superstars today—ashwagandha, rhodiola, Schisandra—and why an adaptogen virtually unheard-of outside the West may be the “king of kings.”Why the herb with a well-built commercial infrastructure but was beaten down by a questionable safety study a decade ago is nevertheless poised for a return. Is he going to talk about cannabis and CBD? You know he is!

While being careful to not pick winners and losers, ABC founder—and now anointed as one of the luminaries gracing the Mount Rushmore of the Natural Products Industry—identifies botanicals vital for vitality and immune health. But really, though, that's not even close to the half of it. Listen in as they dive into the deep end of the pond and talk about: Evolutionary biology and the kindom—no typo—that links plants and animals on this fair planet. The conflict between vitalism and reductionism in how herbalists think about health care. The List. Immunomodulators, sure, but also herbs for vitality.

The right people leading a supplement or functional food company can take the company to the next stage of success, or can mean the brand stays in business at all. But as Angela Marturano, president, Orchid Holistic Search, said, “Working for a company, you're dedicating the majority your life to that business. In return, what is a company willing to do for you to make you feel valued?” It’s a good question. And thankfully, Marturano provided insight into what the top candidates are after when it comes to choosing their employer.

Consumers are clamoring for supplements that support a healthy immune system. Innovative supplements company NB Pure wanted to create a zinc supplement in an innovative spray delivery format. Listen in as senior editor Todd Runestad sat down with Gene Tracy, director of quality assurance / quality control at NB Pure as they dig into:What kind of zinc, and at what dose, would work best in a spray delivery format. Formulation challenges around potency, contamination, flavor and shelf-stability. Microbial challenges, stability testing, and taste issues.

Countries and regions around the world use hemp differently. Listen for details around the differences between Canada, Europe, and Asia. Yes, there was massive overproduction of hemp in 2019 in America. But hemp CBD is a worldwide sensation, and there are opportunities for hemp farmers around the world. Perhaps the largest vertically integrated hemp firm in the U.S. was formed in 2020 when CPG brand Kadenwood acquired Colorado-based supplier EcoGen. Garrett Bain is president of EcoGen and a veteran of the hemp supply business. Natural Products Insider senior editor Todd Runestad sat down with Bain to discuss:The evolving Asian markets, and how Australia is a stepping stone to Asia. Specifics around the “complicated” regulatory environment in Canada. How the European market improves the quality of U.S.-grown hemp. 

To help increase awareness of the importance of vitamin D supplementation about minority populations, The Organic and Natural Health Association launched the “Get On My Level” campaign in partnership with Dr. Ken Redcross, author of “Bond: The 4 Cornerstones of a Lasting and Caring Relationship with Your Doctor.” The campaign highlights the proven health benefits of vitamin D and encourages people in communities most at risk to know their vitamin D level by either asking their doctor or measuring and monitoring their own levels at home using a test kit and vitamin D calculator from Organic & Natural Health research partner, GrassrootsHealth.In this podcast, Dr. Redcross speaks with Sandy Almendarez, content director, Informa Markets, about the important of vitamin D for minority populations. They cover:The need for the medical community to foster and support the patient-doctor relationship.How Black and Latinx communities generally view supplements as part of their healthy lifestyles.How supplement brands can promote their vitamin D supplement to ethnic minority populations. 

CBD researcher Alex Capano, Ph.D., studies at the Lambert Center for the Study of Medicinal Cannabis and Hemp at Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia. Her groundbreaking work was on CBD for opioid addiction—which also found, not surprisingly, quality of life improvements around pain, sleep and anxiety. Natural Products Insider senior editor Todd Runestad sat at the bench with Capano to discuss the frontiers of CBD research. Listen in as they discussSafety concerns around liver toxicity, drug interactions and whether drowsiness is a side effect or an effect. The best way to take hemp CBD—a loading dose, or start low and go slow?What the science says around possible maximum upper intake dosages.

The fountain of youth has been sought for centuries. In the last two decades some ingredients—namely resveratrol and NAD+—have gained notoriety for an ability to lengthen the time study organisms live. The question is always whether the natural bioactives work in humans. It’s all but impossible to conduct a 40- or 50-year human clinical trial, so what now? In this Healthy Insider Podcast, senior editor Todd Runestad sits down with veteran anti-aging researcher Brian Kennedy, director of the Center for Healthy Longevity at the National University of Singapore, to discuss:The difference between lifespan and healthspan—and how the latter may be more important. Biomarkers that can be regulated and which contribute to what is known as the biological clock. What alpha-ketoglutarate (LifeAKG) did in study results in a landmark study published Sept. 1in Cell Metabolism.