Category Archives: News & Views (Amway & Nutrilite)

Spending Time with The Amway Scientific Advisory Group

Last month I was in Michigan to attend an Amway Scientific Advisory Group meeting. I joined a robust conversation with cross-sections of Amway scientists, brand marketers and, most importantly, distinguished scientists from outside of our company who represent current thought leadership in nutrition research and discovery.

Their ideas and work help guide Amway as we continue transforming into a Health and Wellbeing company. Frankly, it’s rare that you have that much high-level scientific leadership expertise gathered in one space to present their findings.

It was a pleasure to be included.

Meet Scientific Advisory Group Member, Emily Ho, Ph.D.

One of the newest members of the Scientific Advisory Group is Emily Ho, Ph.D. who is the Director of the Linus Pauling Institute and professor in the College of Public Health and Human Sciences at Oregon State University.

Emily Ho, Ph.D., Director of the Linus Pauling Institute.

I was personally intrigued by her presentation at the meeting about micronutrients and optimal health, so I reached out to learn more about her research focus and daily work.

She has studied micronutrients in depth, with a deeper focus on zinc and sulforaphane, which is a plant compound found in cruciferous vegetables like broccoli, kale and cauliflower. She understands the importance of vitamins and minerals and the role they play helping us take a proactive approach to our health.

Everyone Deserves to be Healthy

I wanted to get Dr. Ho’s perspective on the topic of optimal health, which has long been an area of interest for the Nutrilite brand. I think it’s a misunderstood idea because people are often under the misperception that it’s something the average person struggles to achieve.

“Optimal health is not enhanced health, as we tend to mistakenly believe,” Dr. Ho explains, “It means being the best that you can be, for where you are in life.” It’s striving to live a high quality life both physically and mentally. Yes, you might consider it to be something you achieve, but instead, for her, it’s something you deserve.

That’s an important differentiation, and a new way to think about good health — everyone deserves to be healthy. But I’m certain we all could use a little help along the way.

An assortment of colorful fruits and vegetables formed into the shape of a heart. Your heart works nonstop pumping about 1,500 to 2,000 gallons of blood through your body daily. In order to do its job optimally, your heart needs proper nourishment.
An assortment of colorful fruits and vegetables formed into the shape of a heart.

As Dr. Ho knows, to get the health we deserve our bodily systems need to be working well, which is why good nutrition is so important. We also need the ability to make the right nutritional choices – which can be a daunting task.

The best way to get the micronutrients we need is from our food, but we need to know what to eat and how much. Because if we’re not eating enough whole foods and fruits and vegetables throughout the day, we’re going to have nutritional gaps in our diets.

And as Dr. Ho pointed out to me – and something we understand at Nutrilite – even the healthiest eaters can have shortfalls in the nutrients they need, even if they think they are eating well.

The Micronutrient Information Center

Ideally, our journey to the optimal health we deserve shouldn’t be complicated. But the reality is different.

It’s one of the key reasons why the Linus Pauling Institute created the Micronutrient Information Center, a website database that provides focused and searchable nutrition advice. It’s one of the most visited sites at Oregon State University with more than 1.5 million users from almost every country on the planet.[i]

The Linus Pauling Institute’s Micronutrient Information Center is a source for scientifically accurate information regarding the roles of vitamins, minerals, phytochemicals (plant chemicals that may affect health), and other dietary factors.

As Dr. Ho points out, it’s challenging for the average person to weave through all the noise in nutrition recommendations. There are so many “health” voices competing for our attention that it only adds to the complexity that can come with understanding nutrition.

That said, you can control your nutrition choices, being able to do so makes a difference. The Micronutrient Information Center provides an evidenced based public resource that will help you find the right nutritional information for your needs.

Why is this important? It’s because our bodies are under constant attack. We not only have to deal with stresses from our environment and lifestyle, but also issues that can come from our genetics, our gut microbiome, and our age – just to name a few.

According to Dr. Ho, micronutrients help increase our ability to combat oxidative stress and other metabolic imperfections. Dr. Ho emphasizes, “But, if you are running low in one of these micronutrients, it’s not always obvious. You can run the risk of your bodily systems declining, long before a test can recognize it. This is particularly concerning as we get older because not only does our resilience to stress decrease, but our need for quality micronutrients increases.”

That’s why maintaining a healthy lifestyle is important. For me, exercising, eating well, getting enough rest, and having a community that supports my wellbeing has helped me increase my health span and allowed me to live a vigorous, meaningful life.

It’s a reminder that good health is something everyone deserves!

Cheers!

[i] Neither Amway or this article is endorsed by, directly affiliated with, maintained, authorized, or sponsored by the Linus Pauling Institute or Oregon State University.

Trusting Nutrilite Organic Farming Practices

A key reason why consumers trust the Nutrilite™ brand is because of the continual innovation occurring on our certified organic farms. Our farms represent an advanced ecosystem that combines thousands of acres of fertile farmland with sustainable organic farming practices.

The research field at Trout Lake West. Research and innovation happen on all of our certified organic farms.

Our commitment to vertical integration allows us to control the entire production process from the seed planted in the soil to the supplement you eat every day. In practical terms, this means we can maintain a steady supply of the nutritious botanicals used to make ingredients for your favorite Amway products, including Nutrilite™ supplements and Artistry beauty products.

Early Inspiration

The inspiration for our farming practices began quite humbly when my father, Nutrilite founder Carl Rehnborg, started growing alfalfa on a small farm in California’s San Fernando Valley in the 1940s. He simply wanted the purest, most nutritious botanicals for his supplements, and he intuitively knew that they needed to be grown sustainably and naturally, without chemical pesticides or fertilizers. This was before we even knew to call it organic farming.

Farmer using a scythe in field.

I remember helping him harvest alfalfa when I was a young boy. He included me in his daily work on the farm, even when I might have been creating more trouble for him than being helpful. As I reflect on those early days, I can see that his thinking at the time created the foundation our farming practices are built on.

Practicing Our Sustainable Organic Philosophy

Our farms represent the pinnacle of our sustainable organic philosophy put into practice, and we do it on an impressive scale. Even so, the farms are not large enough, or diverse enough, to provide the steady supply of botanical ingredients that go into all our products.

Our flagship supplement alone, Nutrilite™ Double X™, contains as many as 22 different plant nutrients. And if you count all the different plant ingredients in the full complement of Nutrilite products, the number exceeds 190 botanicals.

That’s why we can’t source every plant ingredient found in our products from our own farms. Not to mention that many of our ingredients come from unique geographic locales around the world.

Our NutriCert™ Program

So how do we do it? It all happens because of our NutriCert™ program, an incredible supply-chain system that has been in place since 2004. We just wouldn’t be able to provide the breadth of plant-based products for you without it.

Through NutriCert™ we partner with farmers around the world who have values like ours. In this way we can grow plants with newly discovered phytonutrients that wouldn’t flourish on our own farms. NutriCert™ certification requires partner farms to be traceable, ecologically sustainable, and socially responsible.

On our own farms and partner farms, we can monitor every step from seed to finished product. We can even trace a plant back to the farm and field where it was planted and grown.

Here are some examples of our NutriCert™ program practices:

  • Maintenance of a natural and balanced farm site environment
  • Ecologically vital operations that enhance biodiversity
  • Good agricultural practices that promote food safety
  • Worker safety and development
  • Community outreach and involvement
  • Documentation of farm management plans and production activities
  • Traceability of final ingredient to the agricultural field location

The great thing is that the partnerships we’ve created benefit everyone involved. Farmers benefit financially by learning to grow crops using the high NutriCert™ program standards. This, in turn, helps invigorate the local communities. We benefit by expanding our supply chain in a controlled way without compromising quality. Finally, consumers benefit as we can meet the ever-increasing demand for Nutrilite™ products.

It creates a natural success cycle that continues to improve the products we produce and the world we live in. What could be better than that?

Cheers!

Following the Good Thread

At the end of February, I traveled from California to Michigan to visit Amway World Headquarters where I experienced some of the incredible work that is underway to build the future of the Nutrilite brand. I spoke at an employee meeting, met with teammates, toured manufacturing facilities, and visited other departments on the Ada Campus.

Speaking at the Amway Employee Meeting with Doug DeVos.

It was a good week. And my time in Michigan reaffirmed my belief in the future and helped me see that the Nutrilite brand and Amway are on the right track.    

One thing that stood out to me were the bonds that exist between employees, a thread between good people and good work. I believe a key component of a successful company is happy employees who find meaning and purpose in their jobs. Part of that magic stems from a workplace culture that prioritizes overall wellbeing and a balance between work and play.

Yes, we all need to provide for ourselves and our families, but our work life shouldn’t necessarily define us. It’s just one component of our identity.

That’s why I was pleased to interact with employees who really get it, those who have figured out how to find the balance between career success and family. Everyone is unique and different; they bring their own perspective and experience to a community that is working tirelessly to create positive impact in our world. That’s the good thread.

I met with the Nutritional Products Plant team.
The eSpring team shared a sneak peek of the next generation with me.
I was given a great tour of the Spaulding Manufacturing facilities.
I visited the wonderful team in Archives.

It’s all about PREVENTION

You’ve heard me discuss Prevention before. But I want to reiterate its importance. This simple concept can change the trajectory of our future. We need to start now, taking care of our health, taking care of our community, and taking care of our planet. It’s the triple bottom line approach that Amway and the Nutrilite brand have adopted. You see it on our farms, in our laboratories, in our manufacturing, in our offices and in the community of ABOs spread throughout the world who believe in the power of optimal health.  

The future is bright!

I’m pleased that we are following a “good thread” – that we are on a positive path to the future that can make the world a better place. It’s time to be proactive and creative.

We need to constantly search for innovative ways to protect and improve our prospects in a world where technology and things like artificial intelligence are disrupting how we think about things we’ve taken for granted for a long time.

While it feels like everything is speeding up, the goal is to slow down. If you can do that, you will find meaning and purpose in a world where it feels like everyone, and everything wants our attention all the time.

So take a walk, read a book, enjoy a healthy meal with your family and friends. Breathe!

You’ll be glad you did.

Cheers!

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Looking Ahead to the Future

The sun rises above the fields at our farm in El Petacal, Mexico, signaling a new day. As we look ahead, the future looks bright for the Nutrilite™ brand.
The sun rises above the fields at our farm in El Petacal, Mexico, signaling a new day. As we look ahead, the future looks bright for the Nutrilite™ brand.

I’ve been thinking about how easy videoconferencing is these days. Especially the incredible ease with which this virtual platform allows us to connect across continents, yet makes us feel as if we were talking with people in the same room. No longer are we limited to the in-person meetings of days gone by.

Continue reading Looking Ahead to the Future

The First Step to Choosing a Supplement

Spinach plants growing in neatly lined rows. Spinach and other botanicals grown for Nutrilite™ products can be traced back to the source. Rancho El Petacal, Jalisco, Mexico. 2020.
Spinach plants growing in neatly lined rows. Spinach and other botanicals grown for Nutrilite™ products can be traced back to the source. Rancho El Petacal, Jalisco, Mexico. 2020.

Traceability has been a guiding light for the Nutrilite™ brand ever since my father bought his first farm over 80 years ago. And for good reason. It builds trust. He was eager for customers to know where their Nutrilite supplements came from, where he grew the plants used for his products, and how his sustainable farming practices meant his plant concentrates were second to none. His customers could be confident in their purchase because of that level of trust. It’s the proverbial “overnight success” that took decades of hard work to achieve that few people know about. Until now.

Continue reading The First Step to Choosing a Supplement