The topic:

Hoodia was supposed to be the next big thing: A herbal extract with the potential to suppress appetite. But the science has not supported the hype. So where does the herbal extract industry go from here? Is hoodia finished or can we expect a comeback? What other botanicals offer potential weight management benefits?

This session will cover the following:

    • The past, the present and the future of botanicals
    • The challenges of communicating botanical benefits to consumers
    • Lessons from the hoodia experience

Speaker

Mark Blumenthal
Founder & Executive Director
American Botanical Council

Mark Blumenthal is the Founder and Executive Director of the American Botanical Council (ABC); an independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to disseminating accurate, reliable, and responsible information on herbs and medicinal plants. He is the Editor/Publisher of HerbalGram, an international, peer-reviewed quarterly journal, the contents of which reflect the educational goals of ABC. For six years he was an Adjunct Associate Professor of Medicinal Chemistry at the University of Texas at Austin, College of Pharmacy, teaching a course on herbal products in today’s pharmacy. Mark has served as Co-Founder and former Vice-President of the Herb Research Foundation (HRF) and President of the Herb Trade Association, the former organization that represented the interest of the herb industry in the 1970’s. He was also a founding board member of the American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). Recently, his name appeared with some of the most prestigious names in the natural health movement when he was awarded Natural Health Magazine’s Hall of Fame Award for “…opening America’s eyes to the healing powers of herbs”.