HerbalEGram: Volume 5, Number 1, January 2008

The American Herbal Products Association (AHPA), the leading trade association in the United States dealing with herbal products, is developing a database of information regarding import detentions and other border-related regulatory obstacles of herbal product materials.¹

“Our members have told us that they have seen an increase in the amount of time to get ingredients and finished products across the border,” said AHPA President Michael McGuffin (oral communication, December 12, 2007). He explained that company representatives have told AHPA personnel about their individual experiences dealing with these detentions, and AHPA decided it would be useful to develop a system for compiling essential information about import detentions of herbal materials.

AHPA is asking that companies submit information regarding their detained shipments using AHPA’s online form, available here. AHPA has also provided an instruction document for completing the 4-page form, available here. All submitted information will be kept confidential, and all company and import broker names will be redacted prior to use by anyone outside of the AHPA staff. “We’re going to protect everyone’s privacy,” McGuffin stressed.

According to an AHPA press release, these company submissions may help to reveal patterns regarding import detentions, such as the types of products detained, length of detainments, and direct and indirect expenses of these procedures. Such patterns could be useful in evaluating the impact on trade of recent detentions and analyzing their business and economic effects.

According to McGuffin, the only publicly accessible databases maintained by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) that deal with herbal imports seem to be those that report FDA’s stopping harmful or misbranded substances from entering the country. “We’re looking for something broader,” said McGuffin.

A company does not have to be a member of AHPA to participate in this initiative.

—Courtney Cavaliere

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