04.01.03
Amax NutraSource: Bringing Nature’s Chemistry To Life
Amax NutraSource, Eugene, OR, is a raw material manufacturer specializing in standardized herbal extracts and other ingredients. The company has global manufacturing, procurement and warehousing operations that span three continents. The principals of Amax NutraSource, Amax Nutritionals and USA NutraSource, have been involved in the manufacturing and supply of standardized herbal extracts since 1994. In March of last year, the principals merged their companies into Amax NutraSource.
Luis Velasquez, vice president, commented on the company’s background. “At the time we began operations, the use of standardized herbal extracts in the industry was very infrequent,” he said. “After DSHEA was passed in 1994 the interest levels in all herbs, but particularly standardized extracts, began to boom. Our goal was to manufacture high quality extracts that were standardized and offered at competitive prices. Since that time, we have become one of the largest and highest quality suppliers of standardized extracts in the market.” Today, Amax NutraSource supplies herbal extracts from China, India and the South American rain forest to the nutraceuticals industry as well as the food, cosmetic, veterinary, beverage and functional foods industries.
Discussing the company’s product offerings, Mr. Velasquez said, “Most of the products we provide are based on long established and widely accepted Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), Ayurvedic and European health principles. Our products are used for many purposes such as weight loss, male and female sexual dysfunction, stress relief, relief from premenstrual and menopausal symptoms to name a few.”
Amax NutraSource has also developed a reputation for its green tea, bilberry, pine bark, grape seed, white tea and black tea extracts, which are all known for their antioxidant properties. In addition, the company happens to be a large manufacturer and distributor of chondroitin sulfate, glucosamine HCl and glucosamine KCl.
This past year Amax NutraSource was also selected as the exclusive North American distributor of two of Procter & Gamble’s patented products designed for the functional food and beverage industries, SynerTea and Luo Han Guo. SynerTea is a solvent free green tea extract, which is taste free and water-soluble and designed to provide all the benefits of green tea without any of the astringent taste characteristics. Luo Han Guo is an all natural liquid juice concentrate, which can be used to provide sweetness to food and beverage applications.
According to Mr. Velasquez, the company got involved in the nutraceuticals industry because there was a need to provide high quality products on a consistent basis. “As the industry started to expand, there became a need for a company to offer innovative yet highly effective products and we were able to meet that need,” he offered. “We were the first company to offer L-5HTP standardized to 99% purity as well as the first company to offer a commercially available standard for protodioscin and the first to offer an extract made from Bulgarian tribulus standardized to 15-20% protodioscin. Additionally, we were also the first company in the U.S. to make commercially available huperzine A standardized to 1% and 98%.” Later this year, the company will be introducing lutein at very high purity levels.
Offering his opinion on the state of the industry, Mr. Velasquez said that it is healthy overall. “Over the last two years we have seen much consolidation, which has proved to be beneficial for the industry,” he said. “While the market has not increased at the double digit rates it has in the past, it continues to grow steadily. Product quality, safety and efficacy have also continued to improve, which are all obviously good for the consumer.”—T.W.
Amax NutraSource, Inc.
1770 Prairie Road
Eugene, OR 97402
Telephone: 541-688-4944
Fax: 541-688-4866
E-mail: lv@amaxnutrasource.com
Website: www.amaxnutrasource.com
