Case Study: Amway Nutrilite

Founded in the United States in 1934 by Dr. Carl F. Renhborg, NUTRILITE™ emerged from observations of the health of people living in the countryside and those living in urban areas. Dr. Rehnborg noticed that city individuals developed more health problems than those in rural areas due to the consumption of less natural foods. As a result, he developed North America's first multivitamin and multimineral, called Vita 6, made with alfalfa, which is the brand's logo.

In addition to proving the potential of botanicals, Dr. Rehnborg believed they should be produced following agricultural practices that promote human health and respect natural resources. Thus, for the cultivation of botanicals, he acquired properties in Brazil, Mexico, and the United States, adopting organic and regenerative practices, ensuring the quality and traceability of his products, from raw material production to consumer delivery.

The Amway Nutrilite farm in Brazil was acquired in December 1997, when a memorandum of understanding was signed between Nutrilite and the state of Ceará, starting operations in April of the following year. Ceará was chosen for factors such as the region's geographical position for product distribution, availability of water, energy, soil, and climatic conditions.

In Brazil, Nutrilite contributes to the direct and indirect employment of approximately 10,000 people, who play decisive roles in third-party integrated production activities, internal production, and acerola processing.

In its 90 years of existence, the company has undergone several transformations and remained at the top in the sale of vitamins and minerals. Currently, its products are developed by the Access Business Group, a subsidiary of Alticor, and marketed globally by Amway, the world's largest direct sales company.

In Brazil, for third-party sales, Nutrilite has its own brand, Nutribotânica, which produces and delivers high-quality natural ingredients, mainly acerola powder extract, concentrated acerola juice, acerola powder fiber, watercress powder, eclipta alba, and white chia seed. Its commercial transactions are geared towards suppliers, with an emphasis on Europe, North America, and Asia.

Excellent antioxidant capabilities, rich in polyphenols and fibers, the marketed ingredients are recommended for application in food, nutraceuticals, personal care products, supplements, among others. They are cultivated and processed at the farm and industry in Ubajara-CE, offering safety and reliability to clients. In addition, they hold FSSC 22000 certification, Fair for Life Fair Trade, Regenerative Organic Certification (ROC), Kosher, Halal, and Organic (BR/CE/US), the latter certified by QIMA.

The challenge

Processing unit at the Amway Nutrilite Farm in Brazil.

A study released by Embrapa in 2021 revealed that Brazil faces an alarming annual consumption of pesticides, surpassing 300,000 tons of commercial products. Internationally, this figure reaches a concerning 2.5 million tons. The Serra da Ibiapaba, a region in Ceará where Nutrilite is located, is the area with the highest pesticide application in the state. These data highlight the urgency for a sustainable and careful approach regarding the use of agrochemicals, considering the environmental and health impacts associated with this intensive practice.

Since 1999, all company farms have rigorously adopted guidelines that strengthen the management and foster respect for natural resources. In this context, one of the central challenges was to communicate to clients not only the distinctive attributes of the brand but also to clarify the characteristics of the products they were consuming. Nutrilite representatives recognized that obtaining the organic seal not only validated but also emphasized the company's solid commitment to sustainability, providing consumers with the assurance that they were choosing products that meet the highest environmental standards.

To serve demanding foreign markets and counter these critical pesticide use figures in Brazilian agriculture, Nutrilite needed to certify that its products and processes were organic and natural, meeting existing standards abroad. To achieve this, they needed to find a certifier that could meet such a demand. "We needed to communicate that the products went far beyond not containing pesticides, as they incorporate cultural, social, and environmental factors in their production process that consumers had not previously perceived," says Eder Paulino, Nutrilite's quality supervisor.

The choice

Meeting international market demands, Nutrilite chose QIMA in 2002 to start the organic certification process. This decision was first motivated by the compliance of credentials with North American, especially U.S., and European requirements. Moreover, the choice of QIMA was made possible because it is a Brazilian company, valuing the national scene and facilitating initial communication.

Currently, organic certification with QIMA attests to the brand's quality standards, meeting the production and processing requirements according to the schemes of Brazil, Europe, and the United States. According to Eder Paulino, "this certificate continues to strengthen the concepts of sustainable agriculture, respect for people's health, economic viability, and environmental responsibility, adding value to our product."

Achievements with certification

Today, Nutrilite's production units exhibit a great difference from past characteristics, such as their soil, which becomes increasingly fertile and productive each day due to regeneration practices applied since the beginning of operations. With organic certification, the improvements are even more apparent, proving that both products and processes and other competencies of the company and farms follow a strict quality standard, meeting organic production requirements.

First photo: Start of organic acerola planting. Second photo: Current acerola production with BR, CE, US certification.

According to Eder, the partnership with QIMA and the consequent adoption of organic certification helped Nutrilite to reach some milestones in its journey:

• World's No.1 Vitamin Supplement (most sold globally), where a significant portion of the ingredients are supplied by the Brazil unit.

• Great relevance in the market, with sales being conducted by Amway, the largest direct sales company in the world;

• Ingredients (acerola being the flagship) present in over 60% of Amway products;

• Nutrilite as the world's largest processor of organic acerola;

• Impact on conventional producers, as many migrated to organic under Nutrilite's influence;

• More than 150 certified producers, with approximately 800ha of acerola planted;

• Emergence of Procompet (Competitiveness Program) aiming to foster the agroindustry, providing free training and technical assistance to producers;

• Promotion and encouragement of development and study, with scholarships offered to staff, where 42% have a higher education level;

• Shared experience: research projects shared freely with producers;

• Awarded by GPTW (Great Place to Work) since 2016 as one of the best companies to work for nationally and, in 2024, being the 9th best medium-multinational in Brazil and 1st in Ceará;

• FIA Employee Experience - FEEx Seal, an initiative of the Foundation Institute of Administration (FIA) aimed at recognizing companies that most invest in workplaces to be simultaneously healthy, pleasant, and productive, through an excellent experience of their employees.

• Recognition by Globo Rural in 2023 as Brazil's most sustainable farm, in the category of large properties, with organic as a major influencer of this award and acerola as the main raw material.

The benefits of the fruit go beyond its nutritional value. "Besides having a vitamin C content superior to other crops, such as oranges, acerola offers a price advantage when purchased, making it a more economical option for companies seeking to expand their natural vitamin C export operations," explains Eder.

For comparison purposes, according to tests conducted by the company itself and literature, acerola contains approximately 60 times more vitamin C than oranges. According to the World Health Organization (WHO), for people over 19, the recommended intake is 45 mg of vitamin C per day.

Awards from the Amway Nutrilite Farm in Brazil.

Results

Nutrilite's organic project was the 11th in the state of Ceará to be certified by QIMA, and the supplement company is one of the certifier's largest clients in terms of services offered. According to Eder Paulino, during the 21 years of partnership, the biggest challenges involved legislative changes during this work period. "Our relationship with QIMA has always been very positive; we had moments of changes in the laws, which resulted in reworks for both companies, but the certifier has always been very helpful and committed to assisting us," says Nutrilite's quality supervisor.

Alexandre Harkaly, Director of Integration at QIMA, expresses his satisfaction in celebrating a lasting partnership of over two decades and highlights the certifier's commitment to adapting to changes. He emphasizes: "At QIMA, we believe it is our responsibility to identify normative transitions. Compliance is essential, and we are here to offer the necessary service, ensuring clients like Nutrilite meet regulations effectively."

This approach also positively impacted producers. Eder points out that the farm region has historically been predominantly focused on conventional agriculture, including regular use of agrochemicals. However, even in this scenario, a significant adhesion of producers to organic agriculture has been observed, demonstrating the growth of Nutrilite's work, especially since certification, with fair-trade practices and the expectation of action in regenerative agriculture.

"I recommend QIMA as a certifier that gives us openness, listens to us when we have needs, and allows us to access people willing to help us solve problems. And, because it is a national company of such great relevance, it is a source of pride to have this exchange of cooperation for our growth," concludes Eder.