The battle between the rights of healthfood manufacturers, natural health practitioners and consumers versus the corporate health and pharmaceutical giants, is presently being stepped up worldwide. The natural health industry – which is thriving and growing in our polluted world – seems constantly under attack.

The pharmaceutical cartel is extremely powerful and its agenda is being followed and adhered to by governments around the world through Codex Alimentarius. It is involved in the creation, distribution and consumption of foods, cosmetics, toiletries, veterinary products, insecticides, vaccines worldwide, not to mention the billion dollar drug industry.

The pharma industry lobbys governments and trade groups, bringing pressure to bear on newspaper editors and media outlets. Health and medical writers write negative articles about natural health therapies and products to prepare the public for restrictive legislation.

During the last few years, organic high potency vitamins, minerals and food supplements have received a bad press, as well as any therapy such as herbalism or homeopathy that involves taking pills or capsules which are in direct competition with orthodox medicine. These products and therapies are losing the pharmas millions per annum.

Homeopathy especially has come under virulent attack and in 2008 the Chiropractors took Simon Singh to court for saying their treatments were 'Bogus' in the book Trick or Treatment by himself and Prof. Edzard Ernst.

Many of the favourites: arnica, echinacea, evening primrose, black cohosh, St. John’s Wort, gingko, etc., have been subjected to ‘scientific’ trials to try and prove they don’t work. A scientific trial can of course be made to show any desired outcome. After all, we know that scientific trials of pharmaceutical drugs are very often approved and then years later taken off the market when they have been shown to cause harm. Drug 'reports' found to be faked

The reason for these attacks is because the pharma cartel want to take over and control this highly lucrative market to produce synthetic, low dose vitamins, supplements and herbal preparations of questionable benefit to consumers. In addition, many organic and vitamin companies are presently being bought up by pharmaceutical giants who will reformulate.

Due to pharmaceutical lobbying, the EU Food Supplements Directive became EU law in March 2002 and was transposed into UK law on 3rd July 2003. This was followed by the EU Traditional Herbal Medicinal Products Directive which became law in the UK on 30th October, 2005. The most onerous of all is the EU Pharmaceuticals Directive or Human Medicinal Products Directive, which we believe will affect homeopathy, flower and gem essences, aromatherapy, etc. These are highly controversial and restrictive Directives.

On 30th January, 2004 the Alliance for Natural Health mounted a legal challenge to the EU Food Supplements Directive at the Royal Courts of Justice, London.

Outside the Royal Courts of Justice, London. Front row from left: Paul Taylor of the Dr. Rath Foundation, Milly, Louise Mclean of Zeus Information Service, Emma Holister, Dr. Robert Verkerk of the Alliance of Natural Health.

The case was then referred on to the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg and heard on 25th January, 2005. The Advocate General gave his Opinion on 5th April 2005. He was critical of some of the procedures of the EU Food Supplements Directive and exclaimed at one point that as far as he could see it had “the transparency of a black box”. The European Court of Justice gave its Judgment on 12th July, 2005, shortly before the ban would otherwise be set to come into effect on 1st August 2005.

More: www.zeusinfoservice.com/Homeopathy/EUTollsDeath.pdf

www.zeusinfoservice.com/current_issues.htm

The latest legislation to be contended with is the EU Nutrition and Health Claims regulations. It applies to claims made in commercial communications including generic advertising of food and promotional campaigns but not to dietary guidelines issued by public health bodies, or information in the press and scientific publications. It affects even innocent health claims made in a practitioners leaflet and already a person was taken to task by the ASA. www.anhcampaign.org/files/NHCR_final-2006.pdf

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