Bacteria Testing
At least two types of tests are regularly performed: Swabbing and Bactometer. These tests ensure that the production work areas are free from bacterial contamination.
The bactometer detects the growth of organisms by measuring changes in electronic signals passed through testing modules containing suspect bacteria. The bactometer is used to test for mold and yeast, among other things. An increase in conductivity indicates growth of organisms. The changes are carefully measured to count organisms present. When levels of bacteria outside of NSP's stringent specifications are detected, the entire lot or raw material is rejected and returned to the vendor. Nature's Sunshine is the first company in the industry to utilize this powerful technology.
E. coli tests are performed with count plates that contain an indicator that turns the bacteria blue, allowing for effective visual identification and rejection of the lot of raw material.
NSP utilizes the 1-2 test to perform detection of Salmonella long before standard culture methods would.
Quality Testing
Organoleptic testing is usually the first step in quality testing. This involves testing taste, odor, color and appearance of the raw material. Plant species, part, and purity tests are performed with Microscopy testing. This involves preparation of the raw material on a slide for visual inspection and identification on the cellular level.
Thin layer chromatography (TLC) is used in combination with Infared Spectroscopy (FTIR) not only to positively identify individual parts of herbs, but to measure the actual amount of constituents contained within. FTIR passes a beam of infared light through a sample. This process provides the "absorption spectrum" of the item being tested. This test is critical because it is able to accurately measure the presence (or absence) of key constituents and the potency thereof. This test makes it possible for NSP to detect "over-harvested" raw materials (such as goldenseal) that may be low or completely missing key components. NSP then rejects these impotent raw materials.
High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) is an extremely sensitive test used, for instance, to measure parthenolide content in feverfew and ephedra content in Chinese ephedra. This test can actually measure specified constituents to the parts per million.
The ash test involves burning a sample of an herb in a special microwave furnace for one hour at 700 degrees Centigrade. This process leaves only inorganic materials and provides for subsequent measurements of mineral content and contaminants.
Acid Insoluble testing (AIA) treats the remains of the acid test in hydrochloric acid and repeats the burn test. This test reveals materials that contain inordinate amounts of metal particles.
Materials from eastern Europe have been occasionally found to be contaminated with radiation resulting from the Chernobyl nuclear disaster. Gamma testing allows NSP to reject lots of raw materials containing radiation contamination.
Gas Chromatography/Mass Spectrometry separates a material into its component parts and then analyzes each part. This powerful technology provides NSP with the ability to ensure that raw materials are free from foreign contaminants such as pesticides.
Inductively Coupled Plasma Spectrometer (ICP) sprays a solution containing the material to be tested into a controlled 8,727 degrees Centigrade flame. The resulting light emissions are charted to reveal mineral content. This test provides the ability to detect mineral content measurements and allows for rejection of materials that contain unwanted elements such as arsenic, lead, cadmium and mercury. This test is also used to ensure that several products, including Super Supplemental and Mega-Chel, contain the correct amount of minerals.
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