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Dietary supplements are widely available in the United States and Canada. Still, they can also cause serious harm if made incorrectly or contain contaminated ingredients. Standard Process Laboratories (SPL) is a dietary supplement manufacturer in Minnesota. The company sells supplements under the brand names Daily Balance and SP Therapeutics. This company manufactures dietary supplements to treat various conditions, including autism, digestive disorders, cancer, heart disease, and diabetes.
December 8, 2018 – Liable for Fraud and Deceptive Marketing
On December 8, 2018, a federal jury found Standard Process Laboratories liable for fraud and deceptive marketing. The jury awarded $5.5 million to the plaintiff, who sued after purchasing one of SPL’s products, “Cholestin.”
The plaintiff claimed that Cholestin did not work as advertised: it didn’t reduce blood cholesterol levels or improve heart health. He also alleged that SPL falsely claimed its other products’ health benefits, including Calcium D-Glucarate and DIM (diindolylmethane).
The lawsuit was filed by a former employee of Standard Process Laboratories (SPL), a Utah-based dietary supplement manufacturer. It was filed against SPL and its owner, Robert Scott Johnson, in the United States District Court for the District of Utah on February 19, 2019.
The complaint alleges that SPL engaged in unfair labor practices and tortiously interfered with its employees’ rights under state law by requiring them to sign an arbitration agreement as part of their employment contracts that prohibited them from filing lawsuits against employers or taking other legal action against employers if they were terminated or laid off from work.
The Management
Standard Process Laboratories, Inc., is a nutritional supplement company in Palmyra, Wisconsin. It was founded by Royal S. Lee (1895–1967), a nonpracticing dentist who was interested in vitamins and nutrition. The company began as the Vitamin Products Company, which sold food supplements, and later became the Lee Foundation for Nutritional Research.
The company was managed by Dr. William J. Leininger in 1970 as a nutritional supplement company focused on giving people high-quality products at affordable prices. His son Mark took over as CEO after his father’s death in 1995 and had been running things ever since with his wife, Sharon Leininger-Baumann (Chief Financial Officer).
The company has changed hands several times since its inception and is now owned by a family trust. However, it still operates as Standard Process, Inc. and sells supplements, herbal, and veterinary products.
Glassdoor estimates the company’s annual gross sales to be between $100 and $500 million. Its catalogs have described the ingredients of its products as vitamins, minerals, protein isolates, glandular extracts, organ extracts, dried tissues, plant material, and plant extracts, singly or in various combinations.
SPL markets its products through direct marketing channels such as chiropractors’ offices or online sales sites. The company also sells products through retail stores and healthcare providers.
Dietary supplements can cause serious harm if made incorrectly or contain contaminated ingredients.
The manufacturing of dietary supplements is a highly regulated process. Therefore, it’s important to ensure that the quality control measures are in place and followed by all parties involved.
- Test for contaminants: One-way manufacturers can ensure their products’ purity through testing them. This can be done through physical and chemical analysis methods, such as infrared spectroscopy or chromatography.
- Test for purity: In addition to testing for contaminants, it’s also important that you know exactly how much of each ingredient is present in your supplement before selling it on the market or giving it away free of charge (such as with clinical trials).
Conclusion
It’s important to remember that dietary supplements can cause serious harm if made incorrectly or contain contaminated ingredients. It’s also important for consumers to know what type of product they’re buying and whether it has been tested by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
