Veggie Capsule Contamination Concerns

Hello Everyone!

We want to thank everyone for their patience while we looked into the concerns regarding the veggie capsules and possible contamination.  Due to vacations, office closures, and just the channels through which the inquiries had to pass this did take a little while to get an answer, but we finally have one from reliable and credible sources that meets with our satisfaction and we hope it will put everyone’s mind at ease.

Our initial thoughts when reviewing the source of the information was that this claim had little if any merit to it.  Somewhat vague and almost slanderous allegations, a “secret” inside source given to someone several parties removed, and the final statement being a push to a product used by this particular company (Ultra Earth’s bovine capsules) and why they are supposedly superior made us somewhat skeptical.  Still, we stand behind the products we carry 100% and care deeply about the quality and purity of anything we recommend—our own herbal formulas and the means by which they are packaged/contained especially!

The only information we were provided regarding this matter can be found here:  http://www.ultraearth.com/questions-a-answers.html

We sent this over to our herb company along with the original post and requested they provide us with information regarding the capsules they are using.  The owner of our herb company said he was confused about the statement that “all five major suppliers” use this harmful lubricant, since there are far more than five manufacturers of vegetarian gelcaps worldwide.  He also affirmed that he himself has personally visited the Mexico manufacturing plant of Capsugel, the only brand of veggie capsule they use in their facility.  All machines require lubricating oils to make them function properly, but he could not see any stage in the process where any of these lubricants would come into contact with the gelatin used to make the capsule. 

The owner of the herb company contacted Capsugel regarding this matter, since our herb manufacturer is a certified organic facility and must maintain strict standards and controls to maintain this certification.  This is the reason that they use Capsugel exclusively, because of all the vegetarian capsules available Capsugel is the ONLY one that can be used in products which are certified organic, as it does not degrade the quality of the organic ingredients as all other vegetarian capsules do.

The following is the response that was forwarded back to us from Capsugel:

“As you know, we test our finished products utilizing tests required by all countries—all QA requirements globally—which far exceeds the requirements for the US.  That is a part of our Technical Reference File which I can provide.

In the case of pin lubricants—the lubricants we use on both gelatin and HPMC capsules where there is a possibility of incidental product contact, are all H1 certified (food-grade) lubricants, meeting the requirements of 21 CFR 178.3570 Lubricants with incidental food contact.  The pin lubricant is a blend of several substances, all of which are listed in 21 CFR part 184 Direct Food Substances Affirmed as Generally Recognized As Safe.  The composition of the pin lubricant is generally not disclosed as this is considered proprietary information.

Since the writer does not disclose the source of the HPMC capsules—and there are many sources from off shore and around the world—it is impossible to be able to comment on his specific charge.  That kind of unsubstantiated discussion really doesn’t do justice to the lengths that many of us—you included—go to ensure the finest quality products available.”

In the past we have become aware that products we recommended and sold were not being manufactured with the quality standards we demand (many of you will remember when we discontinued Standard Process glandulars and switched to Pure Complimentary Formulas that we now offer).  This is especially true of our own products, Dr. Morse has personally taken great care in selecting only those companies that maintain the highest standards to manufacture products that bear his name.  If we are made aware of additional, more specific information regarding this matter we will continue to investigate.  But as it sits right now with the information made available to us, we believe this claim to be lacking any substantiated support and continue to stand behind our products, capsulated formulas included, 100%.