WASHINGTON, D.C., August 24, 2009 — The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN) and Virgo Publishing today announced plans for two new webinars, with the first webinar—Emerging International Markets for Dietary Supplements: Opportunities and Challenges—taking place on Wednesday, September 30, 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. EDT.   

This webinar, moderated by Andrew Shao, Ph.D., vice president, scientific and regulatory affairs, CRN, is geared toward regulatory, legal and business development executives at dietary supplement companies (ingredient suppliers and manufacturers) either doing business, or looking to do business, in Latin America and Southeast Asia.  The panelists will focus on the potential opportunities that exist in these regions, based on the associated regulatory and policy challenges, including potential trade barriers.

The expert panel includes: John Hathcock, Ph.D., senior vice president, scientific & international affairs, CRN; Karen Hulebak, chief scientist, USDA, Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and chair, Codex Alimentarius Commission (CAC); Mark Mansour, partner, Bryan Cave LLP; and John Venardos, vice president, worldwide regulatory & government affairs, Herbalife International.

The second webinar takes place on November 3 and is titled Avoiding Red Flags and Monetary Penalties: What Every Company Needs to Know About Dietary Supplement Advertising.  Speakers will be announced at a later date.

The registration fee—$149 per webinar for CRN members and $199 per webinar for non-members—is a per registration site fee, meaning multiple people may participate in the webinar from a single site, such as a company’s conference room. The registration fee also includes unlimited access to the on-demand recording of the webinar for 90 days.  In addition, registrants for the first webinar will receive a $25 discount for the second webinar.

“We’re extremely pleased to have the opportunity to work with Virgo Publishing, one of our member companies, on these educational webinars,” said Judy Blatman, senior vice president, communications, CRN.  “With CRN’s expertise in these topic areas, and Virgo’s marketing reach within the industry, it’s a strong partnership.”  

These webinars mark a continuation of a webinar partnership between CRN and Virgo that began in 2007.  The three webinars previously produced are still available on-demand. The first webinar centered on the general aspects of the final good manufacturing practices (GMPs) rule.  The second webinar focused on the specific tools for managing the supply chain and practical approaches to help address safety concerns and ensure GMP compliance. The third webinar focused on the new dietary ingredient notification process.

“Given the popularity of these webinars produced by CRN and Virgo, it makes sense to continue the partnership,” said Jon Benninger, director of business development, Virgo Publishing. “Our goal is to continue to provide useful and educational webinars for as long as there is an audience eager to hear from industry and other experts on timely subject matters.”

To find further details on the speakers, the agenda, and registration information, please visit Virgo Publishing’s online training and education site.

Note to Editor: The Council for Responsible Nutrition (CRN), founded in 1973, is a Washington, D.C.-based trade association representing dietary supplement manufacturers and ingredient suppliers.  In addition to complying with a host of federal and state regulations governing dietary supplements in the areas of manufacturing, marketing, quality control and safety, our 70+ manufacturer and supplier members also agree to adhere to additional voluntary guidelines as well as CRN’s Code of Ethics. Visit www.crnusa.org.

Virgo Publishing produces the SupplySide trade shows and conferences, Focus on the Future executive conference and retreat, Nutrilearn.com webinar education website, and insidecosmeceuticals.com.  In addition to publishing leading health and nutrition publications such as Natural Products INSIDER, Natural Products Marketplace, and Food Product Design, Virgo publishes CULINOLOGY for the Research Chefs Association.