FAQ Concepts

Q. WHAT DOES YOUR COMPANY DO?

A. We manufacture 100% alcohol-free liquid herbs and complex herbal formula blends for private label and bulk ingredient manufacturing, as well as our own Cedar Bear™ Liquid Herbs brand. We also manufacture the first ever 100% alcohol-free glycerite of mono-element triiodide of nascent iodine made with a proprietary process we developed. Both our liquid herbal and nascent iodine processing technologies are firsts ever in the industry.

Q. WHAT WOULD YOU SAY MAKES YOUR PRODUCTS UNIQUE?

A. Taste, effectiveness, stability and that we utilize trade secret processing technologies unique to Cedar Bear. We use our proprietary TincTract® process for making liquid herbs that our founder, L. Carl Robinson, developed over 35 years ago that uses no alcohol at any time and produces liquid herbs that are very concentrated, shelf stable, and taste very good. Most liquid herbal products are processed with alcohol, which denatures and renders many of the constituents in the herb inert and negatively affects taste. Our products do not need additional preservatives and don't need refrigeration after opening. The same applies for our mono element triiodide of nascent iodine that is made using our proprietary alcohol-free Pureodine™ process, resulting in one of the most unique and revolutionary iodine supplement products available.

Q. WHAT WAS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT EVENT THAT HAS AFFECTED YOUR COMPANY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS?

A. Two events actually. The first, when full FDA cGMP standards went into place. Even though Cedar Bear™ was already Kosher certified and met most of the then FDA cGMP inspection standards, the overall effect on us and our industry has been positive given that current Good Manufacturing Practices (cGMP), that include product safety, are now becoming standardized across the industry. On many aspects this puts our industry on par with the GMP and product safety standards of the pharmaceutical industry.

The second, was Japan's 2011 Fukushima nuclear crisis where its reactors meltdowns and the subsequent increase in concern over Pacific ocean and potential world-wide radiation contamination has caused a great deal of focus on our unique mono-element triiodide of nascent iodine product, as well as our herbal products that help protect and strengthen thyroid health and immunity. A few years ago we increased our manufacturing capacity to meet increasing demand for our iodine product by making major generational enhancements to our proprietary Pureodine™ process – the technology used for making our mono element nascent iodine products.

Q. WHAT DISTINGUISHES YOUR PRODUCTS FROM THE COMPETITION?

A. Our proprietary and trade secret TincTract® (TINCture exTRACTion) and Pureodine™ processes each create a differentiated, truly concentrated, naturally shelf stable, and great tasting products that are totally alcohol-free throughout the manufacturing process. We are constantly working to produce the finest liquid herbal and nascent iodine products possible. Our products blend well with other ingredients for many types of uses in the food, beverage, confections, topical use and personal/skin care industries, as well as for the other types health supplements in the dietary supplements industry. The versatility of our products are unmatched in the industry.

Q. WITH CEDAR BEAR BEING FULLY KOSHER CERTIFIED, WHAT BENEFIT IS THIS WITH YOUR FDA cGMP INSPECTION STANDARDS?

Getting Kosher certified actually verified and validated our then in-house GMP standard and that we were indeed genuinely Kosher compliant from the moment we implemented this compliant standard back in 2000. It also validated beyond a doubt that we take all aspects of quality control and assurance seriously, remembering that there was no FDA cGMP policy regarding the dietary supplements industry back in 2000. We also manufacture OU (Orthodox Union, the largest Kosher certifying organization in the world)) approved Passover supervised and certified products – a first ever for a liquid herbal products company. Because Cedar Bear® was already fully Kosher certified when the FDA cGMP policy and standards went into effect it meant that we were already in compliance with most of FDA cGMP inspection standards at that time.

Surprisingly, over 70% of individuals who seek out and purchase Kosher certified products are not part of or have affiliation with the cultural context that Kosher originated from. These consumers simply want a quality standard that has stood the test of time and holds up to modern scientific food safety considerations. Being Kosher certified actually verifies through an independent 3rd party review that our facility, documentation, ingredients and operations standards for cleanliness, safety and uniformity are indeed real, and not just hype or puff. A reputable and fully recognized Kashrus standard, as we operate under, includes numerous aspects also embodied in the now current FDA cGMP standards, with the additional advantage that a Kosher standard is the most time-honored and scientific proven health and safety standard originating from a cultural context.

Further, our Scrill K Kosher certification is recognized by the largest of kosher certifying agencies – OU (being the largest), OK, Star K, KOF-K, KSA and many other certifying agencies.

Q. HOW DOES THIS RELATE TO YOUR STATING THAT YOU ARE ALSO 'HALAL' COMPLIANT?

Being 'Halal' compliant means that our products comport to the Islamic (Muslim) dietary code. In Cedar Bear's case it means that since our products meet all the aspects for being Kosher certified and additionally that our products never come into contact with alcohol at any time, our products are considered 'Halal,' meaning they are 'clean' for Muslims to consume. 

Many liquid herbal product manufacturers promote and/or list on their product labels as being "Alcohol-Free," when in fact they are really 'Alcohol-Removed,' meaning that alcohol was used in their making and then removed and replaced with a non-alcohol carrier. This makes their products 'Haram,' meaning they are unclean and not to be consumed by Muslims. This has caused much confusion and consternation with the Muslim community to the point their Imams have directed fellow Muslims to completely avoid all liquid herbal products because of the potential for deceptive promotions and labeling, unless such products are Halal certified or can prove they are Halal compliant, as Cedar Bear does.

Because Cedar Bear never uses alcohol at any time in the making of both its herbal and nascent iodine products, and never has, we can boldly and honestly state that our products are fully compliant with the Muslim dietary code of 'Halal,' including no animal or insect ingredients, along with no alcohol, ever being used in Cedar Bear made products – hence our being fully 'Halal' compliant.

 

Q. CEDAR BEAR STATES THAT ITS PRODUCTS ARE BASED ON A STANDARD 'WHOLE' HERB POLY-CONSTITUENT APPROACH, NOT AN ISOLATE OR FRACTIONATE MONO-CONSTITUENT PHYTO-PHARMACEUTICAL DRIVEN 'STANDARDIZED' APPROACH. WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE, AND IS ONE BETTER THAN THE OTHER?

The differences is best described with the following analogy:

 Manufacture standardized poly-constituent is like a whole carrot that has been juiced. It has all the carrot's nutritional and constituent properties present in their natural ratio-intact state and synergy, only the fibrous part of the carrot is missing and in some instances the juice is concentrated, but 'whole' all the same.

Mono-constituent phytopharmaceutical "Standardized" is like that same whole carrot having only its vitamin A content removed and super concentrated while all the other nutritional and constituent properties are dramatically reduced or altogether discarded along with the fiber, leaving only the isolate/fractionate mono-constituent based vitamin A part present in the finished product… sort of like a faucet in a kitchen but with no sink, countertop, drains or plumbing for it to work with.

From a pure health building perspective, we believe the manufacture standardized 'whole' poly-constituent approach is the most health restoring and nutritionally supplemental approach for improving and sustaining health and well-being. In other words, Cedar Bear™ 'manufacture standardized' approach is poly-constituent based, while the "Standardized" of the isolate/fractionate phytopharmaceutical driven approach is mono-constituent based.The difference between manufacture standardized poly-constituent and mono-constituent "Standardized" is really simple, but substantial in its ramifications.

A poly-constituent approach seeks to obtain and sustain the naturally occurring synergy, interrelated ratios and biological viability of the broad base of primary, secondary and tertiary constituents and compounds that are intrinsic to a 'whole' unprocessed herb ingredient, whereas the mono-constituent approach seeks to isolate, fractionate and concentrate a singular 'active' constituent or single group of constituents from an herb without consideration for the myriad of other secondary and tertiary constituents and compounds the 'Standardized' marker constituent was originally a part of.

In the simplest of terms, the poly-constituent approach is more supplemental, nutritive, tonifying, building, regenerating, revivifying, and 'whole', whereas the mono-constituent approach, is more drug-like, isolate, detached and apart from, and  and better suited for prescribing by a qualified clinically trained and pharma-experienced individual due to its drug-like intent and nature.

As for one being better than the other, Cedar Bear® is of the opinion that 'whole' poly-constituent based herbal products are best suited for general distribution and sales to the public and most closely meet the intent of the 1994 D.S.H.E.A. standard as well as the technical and scientific definition of a 'natural' based dietary supplement, whereas the mono-constituent phytopharmaceutical driven 'Standardized' potency based products are best suited for restricted distribution and sales through qualified clinically trained practitioners, especially where known highly active constituents in a fractionate/isolate state that are potency increased in a product are used that can actually trigger or exacerbate many health conditions, that wouldn't happen with a more 'whole' herb based product.

To be sure, the bad media, negative press and public scares concerning certain herbs since the late 1980′s, and especially since 1994, has been caused by the misuse, mislabeling, over-reaching and misplaced confidence in the photopharmaceutical driven isolate/fractionate mono-constituent based 'Standardized' potency enhanced category of botanical sourced products, not the whole herb poly-constituent based herbal products like Cedar Bear Naturales® produces.

Ephedra is a good example of this observation. Of 1,400 or so cases cited by FDA concerning Ephedra's adverse events, only one case cited a whole ephedra product (as a simple steeped tea) as being a possible contributor to the event recorded – and then, only as a "possible" contributor, meaning the evidence was lacking to affirmatively substantiate that a whole herb based product of ephedra was ever a problem at any time in the adverse event reporting process. It was the phytopharmaceutical driven 'Standardized' drug-like ephedrine products that caused the ban, not the 'whole' herb based products. And yes! There is a substantial difference between the two, one FDA chose to ignore and continues to ignore.

THE INGREDIENTS FOR SUCCESS

L Carl Robinson, Chairman & CEO of Cedar Bear Naturales, a global provider of liquid herbal supplements, talks to 'Ingredients Insight' about the company's unique product portfolio aimed at the food, beverage, confections, topical use, personal & skin care, and health supplements industries.

Most liquid herbal products are processed with alcohol, whereas Cedar Bear Naturales® products are not, yet do not require added preservatives or refrigeration after opening.

COULD YOU SUPPLY OUR READERS WITH SOME BACKGROUND INFORMATION ABOUT YOUR COMPANY?

L Carl Robinson: Cedar Bear Naturales® manufactures alcohol-free liquid herbs and complex herbal formulas for private label and bulk manufacturing, as well as our own Cedar Bear® Liquid Herbs brand. We also manufacture a mono-element glycerite of nascent iodine made with a proprietary process we developed.

WHAT WOULD YOU SAY MAKES CEDAR BEAR NATURALES PRODUCTS UNIQUE?

Taste and effectiveness. We use a proprietary process that I developed some years ago that uses no alcohol, and produces herbs that are very concentrated, shelf stable and taste very good. Most liquid herbal products are processed with alcohol, which makes many of the constituents in the herb inert and negatively affects taste. Our products are truly natural and do not need preservatives when used at full concentration.

"OUR PRODUCTS ARE TRULY NATURAL AND DO NOT NEED PRESERVATIVES WHEN USED AT FULL CONCENTRATION"

WHAT IS THE MOST SIGNIFICANT EVENT THAT HAS AFFECTED YOUR COMPANY OVER THE LAST COUPLE OF YEARS?

The crisis surrounding Japan's Fukishima nuclear reactors and the subsequent increase in concern over radiation has resulted in a great deal of attention being focused on our unique nascent iodine product,  as well as our herbal products that help protect and strengthen health and immunity. We are now in the process of expanding our manufacturing capacity to meet increasing demand.

WHAT DO YOU ANTICIPATE TO BE YOUR GREATEST CHALLENGE IN THE YEAR AHEAD?

Growth. We've spent the last decade perfecting our manufacturing processes, and now we are increasing the levels of our brand line and private label manufacturing to meet growing demand for our unique products.

WHAT DISTINGUISHES YOU FROM THE COMPETITION?

Our trademark TincTract® process (TINCture exTRACTion) creates a truly concentrated, naturally shelf-stable and great-tasting end-product that is totally alcohol-free throughout the manufacturing process. We are constantly working to produce the finest liquid herbal products possible. They blend well with other ingredients for many types of uses in the food, beverage, topical use and skincare industries, as well as for the health supplements industry.