by John Biggs

Since 2004, Health Canada’s Natural Health Products (NHPs) Regulations have forced more than 20,000 products off the Canadian market. The US companies shown below used to sell their products in Canada, prior to the 2004 implementation of the Natural Health Products Regulations. Following a seven-year process in which the number one request of Canadians was increased access to more natural health products, and in which NHPs were supposed to have been given their own category separate from either Foods or Drugs, Health Canada came out with the Natural Health Product Regulations. Not only did these regulations classify natural products as drugs without providing the new category, they were supposed to protect Canadians’ access to NHPs. The list below shows that they have had the opposite effect. There are literally multiple thousands of products (20,000 plus) that Canadian stores can no longer get or sell. Note that this list does not reflect the products that were lost when Canadian companies shortened their pricelist due to the cost of complying with the regulations.

1.Solaray, Kal, and all other products produced by Nutraceutical Inc. – over 5,000 products offered in its US pricelist. Sold in Canada for more than 10 years.

2. HerbPharm – sold in Canada for more than 10 years.

3. Gaia Herbals – sold in Canada for more than 10 years.

4. Allergy Research Products – over 650 extremely high quality natural products of all sorts – sold in Canada for more than 10 years.

5. Country Life – Hundreds of high quality natural products in tablets and capsules – sold for more than 10 years in Canada.

6. Source Naturals – 2,300 products in two lines representing a full range of nutraceuticals. Will not ship to Canada because of all the shipments held at the border.

7. Vitamin Research Products – 400+ innovative, well-researched products that are flagged and regularly denied entry at the border.

8. Jarrow products – 600+ well-researched, high quality products. Submitted product licence applications, but gave up in frustration with shipments being blocked at the border.

9. Herbasway – producers of green tea products – no longer available due to the regulations.

10. Yogi Teas – these are just herbal teas – most are no longer available due to the regulations.

11. Sweet Wheat – high quality wheat grass products – no longer available due to the regulations.

12. Bernard Jensen products – available in Canada since the 1970s –no longer sold due to the regulations.

13. Organic Essentials – organic tampons – disallowed because their applicator was considered a medical device by Health Canada.

14. Zand Herbals – hundreds of herbal products sold in Canada since the 1980s – pulled out of Canada after the regs went into effect.

15. Life Extension Products – hundreds of extremely well-researched NHPs no longer allowed into Canada for commercial sale.

16. Dr. Christopher's Original Formulas – 200+ herbal formulas sold in Canada since the 1970s. No longer available because of the regulations.

17. Vaxa – no longer allowed across the border due to the regulations.

18. Robert Grey Cleansing products - Sold in Canada since the 1980’s – have pulled out of Canada due to the regulations.

19. Natrol – over 1,000 products. Sold in Canada until the regulations went into effect.

20. Houston Nutraceuticals – Enzymes used to improve digestion in kids. Available until the regulations came into effect. All commercial shipments were then refused entry.

Dozens of Canadian distributors of NHPs are experiencing great economic hardship because Health Canada is stopping their shipments at the Canada/US border. Most of these are products for which product licence applications have already been submitted. In addition, when the regulations came into effect, almost every Canadian NHP supplier shortened their pricelist (sometimes dramatically), because of the cost involved in submitting the applications for licensing each product. This is a drug-style approval system that was never supposed to be applied to NHPs, as per the Expert Advisory Committee, the Standing Committee on Health and Parliament. They mandated that Health Canada should produce regulations that reflected the inherent safety and low risk levels of these products. As you can see, they have done the opposite.

John Biggs, owner Optimum Health, Edmonton, www.optimumhealthvitamins.com (Adapted from a letter originally sent by John Biggs to Ottawa.)