Nature' Way Vitamin Supplement information, tips and advice

The Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990 made nutrition labeling mandatory for all foods, including dietary supplements. Yet while original supplement labels were required to list things like fat, protein, carbohydrates and fiber, they more or less overlooked micronutrients like vitamins and minerals.

With the passage of DSHEA in 1994 came a Supplement Facts Box, a more complete and informative label feature than the Nutrition Facts Box used by conventional foods. DSHEA also granted companies the ability to list all relevant ingredients plus the actual quantity of each supplemental ingredient, rather than just its Percent Daily Value. Even more specifically, it permitted companies to show the name of the source ingredient, such as "vitamin E from d-alpha tocopherol" instead of simply "vitamin E," Dickinson says.

Pharmavite's Joy Joseph, vice president quality, product development and technical operations, says labeling will also be beneficially impacted when the FDA's Good Manufacturing Practices (GMPs) are finalized. GMPs could directly impact future consumer confidence especially when it comes to trusting label copy.

"Once FDA finalizes GMPs, we will have a much better industry," Joseph says. "GMPs will define how supplements can and cannot be manufactured and force all companies to operate on an elevated playing field. It will be a great step forward and help increase consumer confidence in products that are so helpful in maintaining good health."

The two most important functions of a label are to inform and educate--a tough proposition when there's only a small amount of real estate available to accommodate the oodles of information that merits mentioning.

That's where expanded text labels come into play.

"Many of the products we carry have lengthy formulations and, for a lot of our older consumers, their eyes aren't as good as they used to be, so it's tough to provide the information in a readable format," explains Jim Flaherty, senior vice president of marketing and advertising, NBTY. "That's why some of our products with lengthy formulations employ wraparound, fold-out booklet labels. The consumer can open the label, which provides more surface area for vital information, and replaces inserts."

NBTY markets approximately 1,500 products under several brands, including Nature's Bounty, Vitamin World, Puritan's Pride, Holland & Barrett, Rexall, Sundown, American Health and GNC (UK).

Nature Made also uses an expanded peel-and-fold text label on the front of its Advanced product line, which was launched this past April. "It's patented and aids in communicating the benefits of these advanced products: Calcium, E, C and B," notes Katherine Mardesich, Nature Made product manager. The labels also help consumers understand the benefits of the line's key ingredient: phytonutrients.

Ease of use

Each component of supplement packaging is carefully orchestrated to convey a strong, friendly brand image while conveying the product's use and benefits. The most talked about packaging concern among the supplement companies is increasing the consumer's ease of use.

"Anything that makes the product easier to use, helps with dosing and/or compliance and meets the needs of the changing marketplace interests us," says Herbalife's Audrey Sommerfeld, vice president of global product marketing. "There are a lot of interesting materials and processes available and in development. Some areas which interest us are hermetically sealed pouches, aseptic packaging, blister packs, products that can modify the packaging environment such as dessicants, odor absorbers and specialty closures that can provide measured dose dispensing."

Herbalife recently introduced several unique packaging concepts. The company's nitric oxide-booster product, Niteworks, is now packaged in a special domed jar with unique tapered label. Another product, ShapeWorks Garden 7, offers 30 daily dose phytonutrient packs in a drawbridge-style dispensing carton. The new ShapeWorks product kits also feature direct-printed, customized, microflute cartons with handles.

Pharmavite is also using packaging with consumer convenience in mind, such as travel packs or individual packets. "We want to make it easy for consumers to carry our products," says Robert Nielsen, senior packaging engineer. "Further, we use an easy-opening flip cap which is easier to open than screw caps. This is especially important as many supplement users are baby boomers." As baby boomers age, their dexterity may begin to deteriorate.

Pharmavite also uses packages that contain a daily dose of multiple supplements in a single packet to eliminate the need for consumers to carry a variety of bulky supplement bottles. This approach is best illustrated with its Olay Vitamins Total Effects Beautiful Skin and Wellness packs, introduced in July 2003 in cooperation with Procter & Gamble. The package contains a 30 day supply of a special combination of vitamins and minerals all in one daily pack. There are 30 daily packs in the box and the packs are accessed via a front panel dispensing feature.

The Olay Vitamins also feature exceptionally upscale packaging that's atypical of traditional supplement packaging because the line is designed to mirror P&G's Olay skin care product family.

Multi-function cartons

Cartons do more than just help accommodate consumers' active lifestyles by containing single-serve, portable packs. Natrol, for example, has been moving toward merchandising its items in single-unit boxes. "This serves both as a better billboard on the shelf, but additionally allows us to include valued added inserts, samples and educational pieces on our line of products," says Bob Mauser, Natrol's director of communications. "For samples, we started packaging our Biobeads product in a blister pack card so consumers can see how truly small it is. [It's] too expensive for a full size pack, but it helps get consumers started.

"For our Complete Balance for Menopause AM/PM formula, we packaged two bottles as a set in one box: an AM formula for relief of hot flashes and a separate PM formula to promote a good night's rest," Mauser adds.

To package its TripleLean[TM] 3 Way Fat Fighter, Natrol opted for a carton, but not the standard rectangular variety. The carton is hourglass shaped. "We went with this carton shape to mimic the shape of the model on the front of the package, communicating the product benefit on yet another level--as well as standing out on the shelf," comments Mauser.

One of the most inventive and original supplement packages was developed a few years ago by NBTY for its Flex-a-min brand joint product, which incorporates a red blinking LED light into its outer carton. A tiny battery in the package allows the light to blink for up to a year.

"It has effectively brought attention to our product on the shelf and has helped us stand out in the crowded joint care product category," says NBTY's Flaherty. "It's been very successful for us. The money that we would've normally spent in advertising support to drive sales we put into the packaging and we've actually had better results."

One overriding carton-related concern, brought to light by Nature Made's Katherine Mardesich, relates to retail merchandising and its effect on supplement cartons. "Some retailers are changing their shelf set to a spring loaded shelf which is great in that it pushes the products from the back forward to the front of the shell but it can be difficult for products in a carton," she says. "It can sometimes damage the carton, [but] this is only happening at a minority of retailers at this point."

In addition to on-shelf appearances, effective packaging also takes consumer freshness and shelf life into account. To that end, Natrol recently replaced its pressure-sensitive foam liners with heat induction foil seals. The new seals are good for retailers because they provide longer shelf life, and great for consumers because they keep unopened products fresher longer. In addition to the improved oxygen and moisture barrier, the more secure nature of the foil seals means fewer packages will be damaged and prematurely unsealed due to the heat experienced during warm weather shipping, as pressure-sensitive liners are known to be less secure at temperatures above 86[degrees] F.

Although the packaging for most nutritional supplements might appear visually similar, subtle advancements continue to drive innovation that preserves safety and encourages consumer confidence.

Label reading 101

Supplement labels can be tough to decipher. Nature Made's consumer website includes a unique section that educates customers on how to read supplement labels.

"A dietary supplement label offers a great deal of information and can be confusing," says Joy Joseph, the company's vice president of quality, product development and technical operations. "For example, recommended daily values are reported in International Units (IUs), milligrams (mg) and micrograms (mcg). How is a consumer supposed to know why some nutrients are reported in IUs, while others are in mcgs? Our 'How to Read a Vitamin Label' campaign was designed to address some of the confusing label elements. We hope it helps consumers feel more confident in the quality of products they are taking."

Joanna Cosgrove, a freelance writer based in Media, Pa., has been writing about various aspects of packaging, product design and product manufacturing since 1996. Her e-mail address is .