Whole Foods Market has announced new guidelines for personal care products in the Company's stores. For goods to be sold as 'organic', manufacturers will have to meet certification requirements of the USDA's NOP or the NSF ANSI standards. Another step in industry self-regulation, this is an endeavour to distinguish "real" organic products from those on the market that only claim to be natural or organic while still containing unlisted or dangerous ingredients, and may put pressure on other retailers to follow suit.
Nutrition Business Journal
Whole Foods Cracks Down on 'Organic' Personal Care Products
June 22, 2010
Whole Foods Market wants organic personal care products to actually be organic before it agrees to carry them in stores. The company announced new guidelines last week raising the marketing standard for personal care and beauty products to that of the organic food it sells. Depending on the specific product claim, manufacturers will soon be required to meet the certification requirements of USDA’s National Organic Program (NOP) or the NSF ANSI 305 standard for personal care products. In a statement, Joe Dickson, quality standards coordinator at Whole Foods, said: “We believe that the ‘organic’ claim used on personal care products should have just as strong a meaning as the ‘organic’ claim used on food products, which is currently regulated by USDA’s NOP.”
View Original Article Here
Friday, June 25, 2010
BUSINESS NEWS: Statistics Canada Retail Trade Data for April 2010
Statistics Canada has released retail trade data for April 2010, which shows that retail sales dropped in all provinces in the month of April. Food and beverage stores sales were down 0.5% in April after rising for the previous three months.
Statistics Canada
Retail Trade - April 2010
Retail sales decreased 2.0% in current dollars to $36.2 billion in April following a gain of similar magnitude in March. Sales decreased in 10 of 11 retail subsectors and in all provinces.
Statistics Canada
Retail Trade - April 2010
Retail sales decreased 2.0% in current dollars to $36.2 billion in April following a gain of similar magnitude in March. Sales decreased in 10 of 11 retail subsectors and in all provinces.
Sales in volume terms decreased 1.9% in April. Retail sales have been following an upward trend since the beginning of 2009.
View Original Article HereRESEARCH NEWS: Resveratrol for Alzheimer's
Findings recently published in the Journal of Biological Chemistry point to resveratrol's neutralizing action against the toxic effects of proteins linked to Alzehimer's.
Natural Products Insider
Resveratrol Offers Clues to Alzheimer's
TROY, N.Y.—Resveratrol, an organic compound found in red wine, has the ability to neutralize the toxic effects of proteins linked to Alzheimer’s disease, according to research led by Professor Peter M. Tessier of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. The findings, published in the May 28 edition of the Journal of Biological Chemistry, are a step toward understanding the large-scale death of brain cells seen in certain neurodegenerative diseases.
“We’ve shown how resveratrol has very interesting selectivity to target and neutralize a select set of toxic peptide isoforms,” Tessier said. “Because resveratrol picks out the clumps of peptides that are bad and leaves alone the ones that are benign, it helps us to think about the structural differences between the peptide isoforms.”
View Original Article Here
Thursday, June 24, 2010
INDUSTRY NEWS: Study Finds U.S. Health Care System is the Worst on the Planet
This study by the Commonwealth Fund couldn't put matters better. Everyone in natural health knows this generally but here is clean, blunt confirmation.
The Toronto Sun
U.S. dead last in healthcare study
By Maggie Fox, REUTERS Last Updated: June 24, 2010 1:21am
WASHINGTON - Americans spend twice as much as residents of other developed countries on healthcare, but get lower quality, less efficiency and have the least equitable system, according to a report released Wednesday.
The United States ranked last when compared to six other countries -- Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, the Commonwealth Fund report found.
"As an American it just bothers me that with all of our know-how, all of our wealth, that we are not assuring that people who need healthcare can get it," Commonwealth Fund president Karen Davis told reporters in a telephone briefing.
View Original Article Here
The Toronto Sun
U.S. dead last in healthcare study
By Maggie Fox, REUTERS Last Updated: June 24, 2010 1:21am
WASHINGTON - Americans spend twice as much as residents of other developed countries on healthcare, but get lower quality, less efficiency and have the least equitable system, according to a report released Wednesday.
The United States ranked last when compared to six other countries -- Britain, Canada, Germany, Netherlands, Australia and New Zealand, the Commonwealth Fund report found.
"As an American it just bothers me that with all of our know-how, all of our wealth, that we are not assuring that people who need healthcare can get it," Commonwealth Fund president Karen Davis told reporters in a telephone briefing.
View Original Article Here
MEDICAL NEWS; Study Knocks Docs for Cervical Cancer Screening
The overuse of medical imaging has emerged as a major health policy issue. Not only do such practices burn up a lot of money, but consumers are often needlessly panicked.
Hamilton Spectator
Doctors screen for cervical cancer too often: study
June 22, 2010 Marissa Cevallos
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
(Jun 22, 2010)
It sounds like the breast-cancer debate all over again: A new study has found that doctors have been overzealous in advising women to be screened for cervical cancer.
Although physician groups recommend that women older than 30 get a Pap test every three years, a survey of more than 1,200 doctors in a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found thatMEDICAL about two-thirds would recommend patients be screened more often.
View Original Article Here
Hamilton Spectator
Doctors screen for cervical cancer too often: study
June 22, 2010 Marissa Cevallos
McClatchy-Tribune Information Services
(Jun 22, 2010)
It sounds like the breast-cancer debate all over again: A new study has found that doctors have been overzealous in advising women to be screened for cervical cancer.
Although physician groups recommend that women older than 30 get a Pap test every three years, a survey of more than 1,200 doctors in a recent issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association found thatMEDICAL about two-thirds would recommend patients be screened more often.
View Original Article Here
MEDICAL NEWS; Vitamin D for Childhood Asthma
Another Vitamin D Study. They seem endless. The public see them and so do natural retailers, which is good for both.
Insufficient vitamin D tied to severe asthma attacks
Wed Jun 23, 2010 3:28pm EDT
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Asthmatic children with relatively low vitamin D levels in their blood may have a greater risk of suffering severe asthma attacks than those with higher levels of the vitamin, a new study suggests.
The study, which followed more than 1,000 children with asthma for four years, found those with vitamin-D "insufficiency" at the outset were more likely to have an asthma attack that required a trip to the hospital.
View the Article Here
Insufficient vitamin D tied to severe asthma attacks
Wed Jun 23, 2010 3:28pm EDT
NEW YORK (Reuters Health) - Asthmatic children with relatively low vitamin D levels in their blood may have a greater risk of suffering severe asthma attacks than those with higher levels of the vitamin, a new study suggests.
The study, which followed more than 1,000 children with asthma for four years, found those with vitamin-D "insufficiency" at the outset were more likely to have an asthma attack that required a trip to the hospital.
View the Article Here
INDUSTRY NEWS: Natural and Organic Consumer Trend Survey
A very nice and useful survey for natural retailers
Trend Spotting: What are Natural and Organic Food Consumers Looking For?
Mambo Sprouts Survey
When the natural food section at my local supermarket expanded from three shelves to three full aisles two years ago, I got the strong impression that I was no longer one of the “few” consumers scrutinizing labels for all-natural and special diet foods. Demand is thankfully growing, and my favorite coupon site, Mambo Sprouts, used their marketing research team to find out what drives natural and organic food consumers. The results were surprising and intriguing … for me at least. Check out the stats and see what groups your shopping habits fall into:
80% of natural and organic consumers (so we are talking a specialty group already, not the public at large) regularly read labels for ingredient and nutrition information and are interested in purchasing functional foods with added health benefits. 39% checked off that they were very interested in functional foods.
View the article here
Trend Spotting: What are Natural and Organic Food Consumers Looking For?
Mambo Sprouts Survey
When the natural food section at my local supermarket expanded from three shelves to three full aisles two years ago, I got the strong impression that I was no longer one of the “few” consumers scrutinizing labels for all-natural and special diet foods. Demand is thankfully growing, and my favorite coupon site, Mambo Sprouts, used their marketing research team to find out what drives natural and organic food consumers. The results were surprising and intriguing … for me at least. Check out the stats and see what groups your shopping habits fall into:
80% of natural and organic consumers (so we are talking a specialty group already, not the public at large) regularly read labels for ingredient and nutrition information and are interested in purchasing functional foods with added health benefits. 39% checked off that they were very interested in functional foods.
View the article here
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)