The article “Supplement companies made changes after facing crackdown” by journalist Katie Burns appears in the January 15, 2017 issue of Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association (Vol. 250, No. 2) and tells the retrospective story of how 15 years ago, in the face of regulatory threats that would remove animal supplements from the marketplace, the newly-formed NASC successfully designed and implemented a program of self-regulation that created a fair, reasonable, responsible and consistent pathway to market for supplement companies, and birthed the NASC Quality Seal program.

A companion article in the same issue, “Assessing pet supplements,” also by Ms. Burns, discusses the AVMA’s November 2016 decision to rescind its policy supporting glucosamine, and warns veterinarians and pet owners to exercise great caution in determining whether a supplement will benefit an animal. Again, regulatory concerns are outlined with a brief mention about NASC and the availability of the NASC Adverse Event Reporting System to FDA regulators.

Both articles are fair and balanced, and serve as good reminders of what could have been had the NASC not been formed to advocate for the animal supplement industry, and for companion animals and horses around the world.