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About Us

Proudly representing New Zealand’s natural health products sector

Natural Health Products NZ is the national industry organisation representing the natural and complementary health products sector since 2002. Our mandate is as follows:

Inspiring growth: Enable members to capitalise on opportunities

Advocacy: The influential and trusted voice of the industry

Membership: The connection hub for members

Relationships: Boldly lead a collaborative and connected sector

Brand: Position Natural Health Products and our members as world leaders in the sector

New Zealand is an internationally recognised source of high-quality natural health products

New Zealand’s historical focus on agriculture and food production, its natural environment, and wealth of unique resources have combined to create a flourishing natural and complementary health products sector.

From harnessing the antibacterial properties of mānuka honey, to research and development that has identified bioactive properties in New Zealand grown fruit, the country has a long track record of identifying and utilising the medicinal and nutritional uses of natural products.

Exports include plant and marine oils and extracts, fruit extracts, medicinal honey products, deer velvet, botanical and dairy products.

New Zealand’s natural health products industry is worth NZ$2.3 billion annually and growing, with major markets already established in Asia/Pacific, North America, and Europe. Stringent manufacturing and employee wellbeing regulations, and a commitment to maintaining New Zealand’s world leading animal health status, underpin the expanding sector.

Our Mission

Enable a vibrant environment for growing New Zealand’s natural and complementary health products sector.

Our Vison

The natural and complementary health products sector will be widely acknowledged as the rising star in New Zealand’s value-added economy.

Membership
Be the connection hub for members

Understand members’ issues and requirements

Provide platforms for industry intelligence sharing

Provide networking opportunities

Success Stories:

Approx 80% of the industry are members

Summit and Suppliers Day continue to grow and are highly regarded

Lunchtime webinar series launched to extend intelligence sharing

Inspiring Growth
Enable members to capitalise on opportunities

Understand key trends

Foster innovation

Promote opportunities for funding of R&D

Provide export opportunities

Success Stories:

Industry has grown from $1.4billion in 2014 to $2.3billion in 2019

NZ delegation to Healthplex HNC with extensive China networking opportunities

Brand
Position Natural Health Products NZ and our members as world leaders in the sector

Implement a comprehensive Communications Plan

Encourage international preference for Brand NZ

Provide a respected halo brand

Success Stories:

Development of Sector Story with toolkit for exporters including video, images and infographic

Host and promote Annual Industry Awards, celebrating excellence

Relationships
Boldly lead a collaborative and connected sector

Facilitate collaboration

Nurture mutually beneficial relationships with industry partners

Success Stories:

Strong spirit of collaboration with NZTE, building recognition of the industry

Provide networking opportunities with leading science institutions

Advocacy
Be the influential and trusted voice of the industry

Advocate for positive regulatory outcomes

Ensure credibility within the health sector

Uphold Code of Conduct

Champion sustainability

Success Stories:

Faulty/damaging fish oil research paper retracted

Misguided Wellness Bill withdrawn

Essential Business status confirmed for supply chain members

Our Board

Lorraine Moser
Chairperson

Nearly two decades in the natural health industry has given Lorraine a wealth of knowledge, experience and contacts in the New Zealand, Australian and export markets.

Lorraine originally began her natural products career with Nutra-Life Health as Marketing and Sales Manager. During this time she played an active role in Australia and New Zealand’s natural health industry and retail trade including being a member of the Complimentary Healthcare Council (CHC) of Australia and the Self Medication Industry Association. In more recent years she been Vitaco’s Innovation Manager for supplements, sports and food. She has been part of the Natural Health Products NZ Board since 2016.

Lorraine is passionate about proactive health and wellness and the natural health industry. She uses her Natural Health Products NZ Board role to work with the membership and extended industry partners in a capacity that will make a difference and ultimately help tackle the challenges and opportunities that face the industry.

Dr Rod Claycomb
Director

Dr. Rod Claycomb is the Co-Founder and Innovation Director of Quantec Ltd, a New Zealand company specialising in the development and commercialisation of high value naturally derived bioactives. He has an extensive background in the dairy industry, filling roles from pure and applied research through commercialisation. Prior to Quantec, he was the founding CEO of Sensortec Ltd and prior to that, the Director of R&D for Waikato Milking Systems.

He is a Member of the New Zealand Institute of Directors and currently serves as a Director on several commercial boards as well as a Director and Trustee of the Kudos Science Trust and All Good Ventures Charitable Trust, a family-run charity. His areas of expertise include bioactives, biosensors, agritechnology and commercialisation. He holds a PhD from the University of California, Davis in Biological and Agricultural Engineering. He is the author of numerous publications and inventor on seven patent families.

Rod is passionate about New Zealand’s place in the world for natural health-related companies and believes that it can continue to be influential on a global scale which will help New Zealand natural health companies succeed. He is a firm believer in continuing a collaborative approach with government agencies and organisations, which he sees as one of New Zealand’s core strengths.

Michelle Cubitt
Director

Michelle has over 15 years experience in Quality and Regulatory roles in the natural health industry. She studied Biotechnology at Massey University and graduated with honours.

Michelle currently runs her own regulatory consultancy Smart Regulatory Solutions. In her current role she provides advice and strategic input for businesses looking to access global export opportunities in food, natural health and personal care products. She brings extensive global regulatory knowledge to the Natural Health Products NZ Board. Michelle sees the range of opportunities and challenges facing New Zealand businesses and is passionate about assisting the continued global growth of the innovative natural products sector.

Samantha Gray
Director

Samantha, a molecular biologist by training, has over 20 years’ experience in the natural health products, pharmaceutical, medical diagnostic, and biotechnology industries. She was Technical and Process Improvement Manager for Healtheries of New Zealand and an independent consultant to Vitaco Health NZ Ltd and Lifestream International Ltd. She has also held a variety of roles with the US blue-chip companies Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Diagnostics & Invitrogen Life Technologies.

Chris Johnson
Director

A founding Anagenix director and investor, Chris is an experienced investor and business advisor who understands the path to success in the nutraceutical ingredients market. Before joining Anagenix, he assisted a number of New Zealand businesses to successfully export premium gourmet foods to the USA and UK. He also founded and grew a New Zealand tech company to become a global leader in the printing and graphic arts industry.

With his time at Anagenix, Chris has become passionate about the health and wellness sector and developing solutions from New Zealand grown bioactives that can deliver beneficial solution to health.

Chris has been on a number of boards either as Chairman or Director and understands the importance of good governance and working collaboratively with the management team. He brings to the Natural Health Products NZ Board first-hand experience of growing a New Zealand-based company in the natural products sector and the issues and challenges that companies encounter.

Ravinesh Kumaran
Director

Ravi was born in Fiji and immigrated to New Zealand in 2005. He has three children aged 10, 8 and 3 years. Ravi is an experienced and recognised leader in the New Zealand dairy industry, with specific experience in pharmaceutical grade infant formula manufacturing and export.

A chartered accountant by qualification, Ravi has held General Manager, Chief Financial Officer and Chief Executive Officer roles within the dairy and nutraceutical manufacturing companies in the last 9 years and travelled extensively to China and other markets to grow exports from New Zealand. Prior to this Ravi gained significant auditing and governance experience whilst working for PwC and KPMG in their audit divisions.

 

Peter Lehrke
Director

As a biochemist and nutritionist Peter has extensive technical, R&D, manufacturing and general management experience in the foods, pharmaceuticals, supplements and cosmetics industries, bringing more than 30 years of industry experience to the Board.

His career began at Glaxo Pharmaceuticals where he developed generic medicines and then managed the tablet manufacturing department. From there Peter moved to animal health formulation development for Nufarm (now Agenta), and then to Douglas Pharmaceuticals. It was here that Peter led the design and project team for a $9 million pharmaceutical facility in Fiji, which he commissioned, obtained GMP certification and established the operations. After returning to New Zealand Peter set up technical consulting company Pharmatech, and held positions as General Manager at GMP Pharmaceuticals and R&D Manager at NIG.

Peter has now established a new contract manufacturing factory in Hamilton called PharmaNZ Limited, specialising in dry oral dosage forms (capsules, tablets and powders) with a full range of powder packing options.

Peter has been on the Natural Health Products NZ Board since 2003.

Claire Quin
Director

Claire has over 18 years’ of experience working within the natural health food, complementary medicine and personal care sector. Claire has held positions across numerous areas of the sector, such as Quality, Technical, Sales and Marketing, Business Development and Management,  demonstrating her extensive and comprehensive knowledge across crucial areas of the industry.

Claire currently holds the position of General Manager for Alaron Products Limited, a GMP Certified Contract Manufacturer of health supplements and natural skincare. Not only does Claire have a strong quality and technical focus she also brings a practical and operational perspective to any undertaking and under Claire’s management Alaron took out the Natural Health Products inaugural Supplier of the Year award in 2018. Her understanding of customer requirements, market access constraints and regulatory environments would help to strengthen the breadth of knowledge on the executive team for the broad range and ever increasing number of member companies.

Claire studied Food Technology at Massey University where she graduated with honors. She also holds a Postgraduate diploma in Business Administration from Massey University. Claire started her career in the Natural Health Products sector working with some of the first medical grade Manuka Honey developments, studying the quality of the honey from hive to processing and every stage in between. Claire’s work in this area contributed to the early specifications for medical grade and food grade honey.

Claire understands the importance and value an industry organisation provides and currently holds an executive position on the Cosmetic New Zealand board. She is highly motivated and passionate about the Natural Health Products sector. She is proud to work with innovative natural health ingredients, manufactured to the highest quality, for New Zealand and the rest of the world.

Phil Rasmussen
Director

Phil founded Phytomed Medicinal Herbs, which manufactures practitioner-only herbal products as well as the Kiwiherb® range of OTC herbal products. He is also an experienced phytotherapist and has practiced at a clinic in Auckland for 25 years.

Before pursuing herbal medicine he worked for more than 10 years as a pharmacist.

Over the years, Phil has lectured at natural medicine colleges and universities, written extensively on herbal subjects for practitioner and consumer publications, and presented at conferences in New Zealand, Australia and the UK. He is the former Deputy Chair of the Interim Expert Advisory Committee on Complementary & Alternative Medicines (IEACCAM), established by the New Zealand and Australian governments, and in 2016 was appointed Chair of the Interim Technical Expert Advisory Committee on Natural Health Products – Permitted Substances List (PSL) Subcommittee, established by the NZ Ministry of Health.

As the founder of a relatively small but fast growing GMP certified company, Phil feels strongly about the need to represent the interests of small to medium sized businesses, on the Natural Health Products NZ board.

Our Staff

Kerry Warn
General Manager
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Kerry is responsible for managing the organisation’s day-to-day operations and member support activities including the annual Summit, annual industry Awards, Natural Health Products NZ Suppliers Days and member communications. She was promoted to the General Manager role in early 2017 after having been the organisation’s Business Manager.

Sheryl Edmonds
Executive Assistant
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Sheryl’s bio

Samantha Gray
Government Affairs
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Samantha, a molecular biologist by training, has over 20 years’ experience in the natural health products, pharmaceutical, medical diagnostic, and biotechnology industries. She was Technical and Process Improvement Manager for Healtheries of New Zealand and an independent consultant to Vitaco Health NZ Ltd and Lifestream International Ltd. She has also held a variety of roles with the US blue-chip companies Abbott Laboratories, Abbott Diagnostics & Invitrogen Life Technologies.

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