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When it comes to nutritional supplements, there’s a lot of concern about what they do to, and/or for, the body. But what about what they do to the planet? To animals and their habitat? Terraseed, a vegan supplement company, decided to find out.
The result is a 25-page report titled, “Animal and Environmental Impacts of the U.S. Supplement Industry.” The company concludes, “The United States dietary supplement industry kills an estimated 24 billion animals, while creating 1.8 billion plastic pill bottles of waste every year.”
Ouch. Big ouch. For wildlife, the environment and humans.
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The report outlays a spectrum of statistics, including the fact that nearly 50% of supplements on the market today contain animal byproducts. It’s not like this is the first time dietary supplements have made the news. The debates rage on about effectiveness, questionable ingredients and health dangers, yet little is reported about ingredient sourcing and packaging. Supplements are primarily unregulated, allowing companies to make unverified claims about anything they want.
Terraseed analyzed over 79,000 supplement products using the U.S. National Institutes of Health Dietary Supplement Label Database (DSLD). About one quarter of the supplements reviewed contained the animal byproduct magnesium stearate. Gelatin, another animal-based product, was found in over 16,000 products. Vitamin D was commonly derived from sheep’s wool, omega-3 was typically sourced from fish oil and bee pollen and propolis harvested from honeybees were all found as well.
The report states, “Accounting for overlap in products that include both ingredients, we found that approximately 44% of all on-market supplement products contain at least one of the two most common animal ingredients (magnesium stearate and gelatin). Based on this data, the report estimates at least 50% of all supplement products contain at least one animal-derived ingredient.”
Terraseed makes the case that all products manufactured with a reliance on animal components can also be produced in a vegan way. For example, omega-3s are so tightly associated with fish, they are often referred to as fish oil. Small fish like anchovies are typically sourced.
The company summarizes, saying, “we were able to calculate a conservative estimate of 70.3 billion fish globally and 24.3 billion fish in the U.S. alone are consumed in the production of fish oil for Omega-3 supplements.”
The report further expounds to say it takes approximately 100 anchovies to make a single bottle of omega-3. However, other products also hold high quantities of omega-3s. Terraseed turns to plants instead, using the biochemically identical algae as the base for its omega-3s.
With its findings, Terraseed is taking a stand and asking every citizen to do the same. The company is petitioning the FDA to implement more transparent regulations, requiring companies to disclose if their supplements contain any animal byproducts. On the home front, Terraseed monitors its own footprint by using sustainably-sourced ingredients that are clearly supplied on the labels for transparency.
The mission behind the company and the research is to not only identify the impact of using animal products in supplements, but also to bring attention to plastic waste.
The report states, “Based on an analysis of the size of the U.S. supplement market and the average cost of a supplement bottle, we estimate that approximately 2.3 billion supplement bottles are sold annually.”
Of those, only a very small percentage are recycled. Plus, a significant amount of that plastic finds its way into the ocean where it affects the marine environment at every level. Although traditional plastic supplement bottles are lightweight and inexpensive, Terracycle proves there are viable alternatives. Inasmuch, it has made the commitment to package all supplements in fully biodegradable pill bottles, avoiding the use of unnecessary plastic and minimizing post-consumer waste. Packaging is in the form of a corn-based shrink sleeve and pill bottle made out of virgin pulp paper that is sourced from FSC-certified forests. Although it can be composted at an industrial facility, it’s intended for repeated use within the home.
As a result, every single component of its packaging is plastic-free and biodegradable, including the ink and the label. Mailers are made from recycled paper. The refill pouches are made from cellulose and paper. Moisture-absorbing desiccants are made from natural materials too. It’s comprised of bentonite clay and packaged in FSC-certified Kraft paper so they will naturally degrade.
Terraseed’s Transparent Label Campaign aims to put restrictions on companies who claim their products are plant based or all-natural by requiring they back up those claims with reliable data. Otherwise, customers are often misled by imprecise, inaccurate or even false information.
Terraseed is pushing for these changes to make it easier for consumers to access accurate ingredients lists to make a more informed decision. It needs help in the campaign to make this happen and is asking for signatures on the petition. You can find more information here.
Images via Transparent Label Campaign
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