Dry Labbing
Dry labbing is when supplement companies produce products that they claim to analyze for contents, but the analyses are actually being fabricated. That is, the products were “tested” in reference labs that use a process called dry lab analysis. These labs did no actual laboratory work at all, but rather just produced a certificate of analysis, or a piece of paper with amounts listed. The amounts fit exactly what the manufacturer wanted to list on their label. This is a process that no supplement manufacturer should ever use. It is both illegal and dangerous.
At USANA we are so concerned about the quality, potency and purity of our products that we don’t trust our analysis to contract labs. We established our own analytical laboratory in-house, in the same building where we make our supplements. We use this lab to test all of our incoming raw materials and finished products, ensuring that what’s listed on the label is in the bottle. We also take this a step further and test for unwanted contaminants, such as toxic heavy metals and microbial contaminants.
We designed our quality assurance program to follow the same practices as the pharmaceutical industry. We control our process from start to finish in our own state of the art manufacturing facility, using validated analytical methods in our own labs. In addition, we also have validated and certified our products through independent 3rd parties. Our manufacturing facility is certified to follow Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) by NSF International. Further, our products have also been tested and certified to meet label clams by NSF – further proof that we meet the highest standards in the industry.
Another related issue is the practice of hiding illegal ingredients in supplements. This “spiking” of a supplement with athletically banned substances, such as steroids, stimulants and the like, is an abhorrent practice that should be eliminated by prosecution to the fullest extent of the law. USANA has never spiked or adulterated any product with these substances. In fact, USANA was the first and only company that was so confident of its manufacturing, Quality Control protocols, and analytical testing capabilities, that we established a Million Dollar Guarantee for elite athletes who compete under World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) rules. With this guarantee, USANA promises that, during the term of the agreement, should the athlete test positive for a banned substance included in the WADA list of banned substances, as a result of taking USANA® nutritional products, USANA will compensate the athlete up to two times his or her current annual earnings (with a maximum of $1 million).
USANA also pioneered the relationship with testing facilities in the United States and Europe to ensure the absence of all WADA banned substances in its products, and was one of the first supplement manufacturers to test and certify products through Informed-Choice/Informed-Sport and the NSF Certified for Sport programs, helping to lead the industry towards more effective and safer products.
