In comments submitted to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) last Friday, AHPA has requested structural revisions to a list of crops that the agency has determined are “rarely consumed raw” (the RCR list). Foods on the RCR list are exempted from the provisions of the Standards for the Growing, Harvesting, Packing, and Holding of Produce for Human Consumption regulation, commonly known as the Produce Safety Rule.

AHPA has expanded the resources available on its COVID-19 Web Center to help the herbal products industry prepare for vaccine distribution efforts. Vaccine distribution is already ongoing, and important allocation decisions may need to be made with very little advance notice. AHPA encourages members of the herbal products industry to study state vaccine distribution policies, identify public health contacts, and plan for these moments before they occur.

Washington, D.C., December 15, 2020—Tieraona Low Dog, M.D., recently educated congressional staffers on the responsible role of dietary supplements in supporting immune health, as well as their many other health and wellness benefits, particularly in the era of COVID-19. Dr. Low Dog was featured at the final Congressional Dietary Supplement Caucus (DSC) briefing of 2020, held last week. An expert in integrative medicine, dietary supplements and women’s health, Dr. Low Dog shared insights on the importance of proactive health maintenance, including addressing nutrient deficiencies that increase risk of infection and disease.

The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) is issuing its annual call for candidates for elected trustees to the association's Board of Trustees. Due to the cancellation of Expo West in Anaheim, the Board of Trustees has made the decision that the election for the 2021 cycle will be held in a virtual format during AHPA's annual member meeting, to also be held virtually on March 9, 2021. Candidates should be prepared to participate in an online platform where they will have the opportunity to give a short address to the membership.

The Association's

The December 2020 AHPA Report includes: AHPA promotes Amber Bennett to new VP position; Ransomware Protection: How Safe is Your Data?; AHPA Webinar: Post-Election Download - Free and On-Demand; Call for candidates to AHPA's Board of Trustees; Nominations now being accepted for 2021 AHPA Awards and more.

In an adjustment to pesticide regulations years in the making, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) issued a final rule on November 6, 2020 revising and expanding the Agency’s pesticide tolerance crop grouping regulations for herbs and spices. These revisions incorporated and accepted many of the comments AHPA submitted in 2013 and again in 2019, requesting the addition of many herbal commodities that had not previously been included in EPA’s crop grouping system.

The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) joined a coalition of organizations headed by the Food and Beverage Issue Alliance (FBIA) to request a comment period extension for FDA’s recently published proposed rule on food traceability. AHPA has previously reported on the proposed rule in this AHPA Update.

Silver Spring, MD, Nov. 4, 2020 -- The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA) today announced Amber Bennett’s promotion to Vice President of Marketing and Engagement, a new position that reflects AHPA’s expectation for continued growth and its ongoing commitment to finding more and better ways to serve its membership.

The American Herbal Products Association is calling attention to the need for food facilities (including dietary supplement facilities) that are required to register with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to renew their registration not later than December 31, 2020, if they have not already done so. The biennial food facility registration renewal period began October 1.