Natural products industry leaders Gaia Herbs® and Navitas Naturals® are collaborating in their continued commitment to provide high quality, nutrient rich supplements and foods. With closely aligned missions, visions and values, both companies understand that consumers entrust them to maintain their well-being through integrity.

Recent news concerning the quality of in-store supplements in Target, GNC, Walgreens and Wal-Mart and the potential adulteration of the global Maca supply chain has illuminated the need for education and confidence through transparency. Gaia Herbs and Navitas Naturals look to distance themselves from the brands that do not provide a guarantee of confidence.

Maca is a versatile superfood native to Peru, where farmers have been growing and cultivating it for centuries in the high Andes Mountains. An adaptogen that thrives uniquely in this extreme environment, Maca has traditionally been used to alleviate occasional stress, improve energy, and increase libido.

To ensure its products contain only 100 percent Peruvian Maca, Gaia Herbs uses a stringent quality-control protocol (including DNA analysis, HPLC fingerprint profiling and UV-vis PCA), and is now providing the same level of proof for Navitas Naturals’ Maca Powder. This scientific validation is the only way to ensure that a product is pure, and it delivers a strong message: As market leaders, Navitas Naturals and Gaia Herbs believe it is their duty to use their buying power to guarantee consumers have access to real, potent, unadultered Peruvian Maca. This long-term, sustainable approach is better for Peru and its farmers, and for consumers and their well-being. By making informed buying decisions, consumers of Maca can protect themselves from potentially harmful adulterants and vote with their dollars to take a stand against supply chain practices that do not align with their personal values.

The recent surge in demand for Maca has destabilized the supply chain. As availability of the heritage crop tightens and prices rise, companies face a tradeoff: keep prices stable but lower standards, or increase prices but maintain high standards. The market is already seeing an influx of lower-priced products containing adulterated, less potent Maca.

Gaia Herbs and Navitas Naturals share their concern for the reputation of this crop and the benefits people rely on. Products containing low quality Maca could ultimately destroy consumers’ faith in Maca and the companies who sell it, and lead to the eventual demise of the market. Gaia Herbs and Navitas Naturals will sell only Maca that meets their industry-leading quality standards. In a time of uncertainty for this heritage botanical, Navitas Naturals and Gaia Herbs remain committed to the efficacy, potency and quality of their Maca products as well as the farmers and consumers they support.