It seems a week doesn’t pass without a new AP story about China’s food safety problems. The media has really latched onto it. A Google search on “”Chinese Food Safety”" returned over 5.6 million results.

Beijing is currently deflecting blame to foreign media outlets.

Let’s be honest, fear sells better than hope….be it online ads, newspaper subscriptions or 30-second spots inbetween segments on your local & national news. Unfortunately, this is the bottom line.

When it comes to China-sourced ingredients, questioning the safety and efficacy is no new issue to the dietary supplement industry. It’s also becoming a hotter issue with organics, as Safeway’s O Organics line (containing organic products & organic ingredients sourced in China) was called into question at The Organic Summit.

The greater China product safety issue is certainly growing, and will likely renew the focus on Chinese-sourced raw ingredients for dietary supplements. Not that this hasn’t been an “”on-an-off”" issue for the last 10 years for the dietary supplement industry.

Stay tuned for NBJ’s upcoming report on the Chinese nutritional market. Call to pre-order your copy today - 303.998.9399

The 2007 NBJ Summit is starting to feel “”real”" around the office here. With a theme “”Capturing Healthcare Dollars”", I’m personally looking forward to hearing the discussions the conference sessions generate amongst attending CEOs.

Specifically, I’m looking forward to the Friday morning sessions:

• Consumer Driven Healthcare - Keynote David Perlmutter, MD
• Capturing Healthcare Dollars - Designing a New Paradigm
• Moderator: David Matteson, Executive Consultant, Early-Edge Direction
• Panelists:
  Paul E. Bendheim, MD, Chairman & Founder, Chief Medical & Scientific Officer, BrainSavers
  Robert Duggan, MA, Mac, President, Tai Sophia Institute
  Michael Levin, Founder, Health Business Strategies
  Gary Spirer, Founder, Ask Destiny Healthcare

As American consumers calculate their health care cost at nearly double that of other industrialized nations with results that are often inferior, the current model will be and must be changed. The nutrition industry has a great opportunity to meet these consumers~R needs, but is the industry ready with a model that is credible and safe?

Dr. Perlmutter is a physician, scientific researcher, writer, instructor, businessman and entrepreneur who has seen the healthcare system from all sides. An outspoken critic of the pharmaceutical industry, he understands what is happening in healthcare today and offers ideas, business models and cutting edge treatments for a new health paradigm.

He will define the scope of this opportunity and explain how companies can help consumers create health and wellness strategies.

In the Capturing Healthcare Dollars session, themes from the morning keynote will be expanded upon. A panel of industry experts/CEOs will discuss their thoughts on a new paradigm for healthcare. What is the size of categories with nutritional options? What are the economic issues driving these categories and where is the investment going to water new ideas? How can companies create brand equity against pharmaceutical drug options? We’ll hear the panels’ ideas and perspectives on this new paradigm as well as examples of companies that have successfully created market alternatives.

My wife and I recently welcomed a beautifuly baby girl into this world. As a result, I’ve been up close and personal with the U.S. healthcare system for the last 12 months…and let me tell you, there are some real disconnects there. I look forward to hearing more about the future of U.S. healthcare in the United States and the opportunities that exist for Summit attendees. Like the organic foods industry, the nutrition industry has come a long way…but there’s still a long road ahead.

P.S. The NBJ Summit is nearly sold out, so if you haven’t registered, there’s no better time than now. Click here to register.