Annual Awards Program
Each year the Natural Products Association honors dedicated individuals who have made significant contributions benefiting the natural products industry. At Natural MarketPlace, the Natural Products Association's annual trade show and convention, members gather to salute those dedicated individuals who have contributed so much to the association and the industry. Award recipients are honored during the Natural Products Association’s annual trade show and convention. 2010 winners are featured below.
Natural Products Association's 2010 Award Recipients
The Natural Products Association is proud to announce the 2010 recipients of the association’s annual awards presented to outstanding individuals who have made significant contributions in various areas of the natural products industry. Recipients will be honored at the Natural Products Association’s annual trade show and convention, Natural MarketPlace 2010 (www.naturalmarketplaceshow.com), June 10-12 in Las Vegas, Nev.
Burton Kallman Scientific Award (view Criteria)
Connie M. Weaver, Ph.D.
The Burton Kallman Scientific Award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding scientific contributions that have benefited the natural products industry. This year's recipient, Connie M. Weaver, Ph.D., is distinguished professor and head of the Department of Foods and Nutrition at Purdue University.
Dr. Weaver's unique approach to the study of calcium metabolism in teens has provided insight into factors affecting development of peak bone mass during growth, which determines risk of osteoporosis in women. The results of her research team's studies are being used to set recommendations for calcium for populations around the world. She was appointed to the National Academy of Sciences Food and Nutrition Board Panel to develop new recommendations for requirements for calcium and related minerals. The level of 1,300 milligrams per day for teens was based on her team's research. She is responsible for the creation of a Botanicals Center at Purdue University. Dr. Weaver is past-president of American Society for Nutritional Sciences and is on the Board of Trustees of the International Life Sciences Institute. She has received several honors, including the Purdue University Health Promotion Award for Women and was also the first woman to be awarded the Sigma Xi Outstanding Researcher Award at Purdue. Dr. Weaver served on the 2005 U.S. Dietary Guidelines Advisory Committee. She received a Ph.D. in food science and human nutrition from Florida State University and holds minors in chemistry and plant physiology.
(view Criteria)
Jeffrey Bland, Ph.D.
The President's Award was created to recognize an individual who has made longtime contributions to the natural products industry, or has made a one-time, uniquely significant impact on the industry. This year's recipient is Jeffrey Bland, Ph.D.
Based in Gig Harbor, Wash., Dr. Bland has been an internationally recognized leader in the nutritional medicine field for over 25 years. Dr. Bland founded HealthComm International, Inc. in 1984, and served as its chief executive officer until a merger with its strategic partner, Metagenics, in 2000. Dr. Bland currently serves at chief science officer for Metagenics and president of MetaProteomics. A nutritional biochemist and registered clinical laboratory director, Dr. Bland is a former professor of biochemistry at the University of Puget Sound, and a previous director of nutritional research at the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine. He is one of the four original founders of Bastyr University, the first federally accredited university in the United States offering graduate and undergraduate degrees in natural medicine. With his wife, Susan Bland, M.A., he founded the Institute for Functional Medicine, now a respected nonprofit organization. Throughout his long career, two activities have remained constant for Dr. Bland: production of his monthly audio publication, Functional Medicine Update (FMU), and an annual one-day seminar tour. His Web site, called Synthesis, is the exclusive distributor of these educational products, as well as numerous other materials produced by Dr. Bland.
Rachel Carson Environmental Award (view Criteria)
Denis Hayes
The Rachel Carson Environmental Award honors individuals who have made outstanding contributions to the protection of the environment. The winner for 2010 is Denis Hayes, president and CEO of the Bullitt Foundation, a Seattle-based philanthropy dedicated to enhancing and preserving the environment of the Pacific Northwest.
In 1970, Hayes was national coordinator of the first Earth Day -- an event often credited with launching the modern American environmental movement. He still serves as board chair of the Earth Day Network, which is now active in 184 nations. He has held posts at institutions around the country, including the University of California at Santa Cruz, Stanford University, the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars at the Smithsonian Institution, and the Worldwatch Institute. He has received the highest honors awarded by the National Wildlife Federation, the Natural Resources Council of America, and the Humane Society of the United States and is the only North American to have received the World Bank's Global Environmental Leadership Award. Hayes serves, or has served, on the boards of Stanford University, the Federation of American Scientists, the World Resources Institute, the League of Conservation Voters, the American Solar Energy Society, and the Environmental Grantmakers Association. Time magazine selected Hayes as one of its "Heroes of the Planet," and the National Audubon Society included him in its list of the 100 Environmental Heroes of the Twentieth Century. He is the author of Rays of Hope: The Transition to a Post-Petroleum World and Earth Day Guide to Planet Repair.
Statesman/Stateswoman Award (view Criteria)
The Statesman/Stateswoman Award is given to individuals outside the natural products industry who have been an ally to the natural products industry in the political and legislative arena. The winner for 2010 will be announced at a later date.
Natural Products Association Industry Champion Award (view Criteria)
The newly renamed Natural Products Association Industry Champion Award recognizes individuals who have made notable contributions to the natural products industry above and beyond commercial success. Recipients of the 2010 Natural Products Association Industry Champion Awards will be announced at a later date.
Natural Products Association Clinician Award (view Criteria)
The Natural Products Association Clinician Award was created to honor licensed healthcare practitioners whose work exemplifies the best standards and dedication to responsible holistic, non-invasive and integrative/complementary/ alternative medicine modalities. This year’s recipients are Robert Bonakdar, M.D., Mary Hardy, M.D., and Jan McBarron, M.D.
Robert Bonakdar, M.D.
Dr. Bonakdar is director of pain management at the Scripps Center for Integrative Medicine. He completed his medical training at the University of Nevada School of Medicine, with a residency in family practice at Grossmont Hospital. He has additional training in complementary medicine, having completed the UCLA Acupuncture Course for Physicians and performed a Richter Fellowship in Southeast Asia where he studied acupuncture, Tai Chi/Qi Gong, and Eastern spirituality. He is active in combining modalities such as acupuncture, herbal medicine and stress reduction with conventional allopathic care with a clinical focus on the treatment of pain and related disorders. His research in complementary and alternative medicine has been awarded two national research awards and was highlighted in The British Medical Journal and Family Medicine.
Mary Hardy, M.D.
Dr. Hardy has actively combined complementary and alternative therapies with traditional Western medicine for many years. A graduate of Louisiana State University School of Medicine, she completed her internal medicine residency at the Tufts New England Medical Center and completed advanced training in botanical medicine at the Institute for Medical Herbalism. The multi-disciplinary clinic she founded at Cedars-Sinai Hospital allowed her to explore the practical and philosophical issues that both facilitate and impede the development of Integrative Medicine as a discipline. She serves as the co-chair of the Clinical Practice Committee of the Academic Consortium of Integrative Medicine. Dr. Hardy is the Medical Director of the Simms/Mann - UCLA Center for Integrative Oncology, UCLA's Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center, David Geffen School of Medicine. Her program educates cancer patients in integrative therapies.
Jan McBarron, M.D.
Dr. McBarron began studying the efficacy of natural alternatives after seeing the side effects of prescription drugs on her patients. She has earned a naturopathic doctorate and advocates vitamins and herbs as healthier and less expensive alternatives to prescription drugs. She received her M.D. from Hahnemann University in Philadelphia and was the fourth female in the country to become board-certified in bariatric medicine (weight loss medicine). She is a member of the American Medical Association, American Society of Bariatric Physicians, and the American College for the Advancement of Medicine. In addition to being a best-selling author, Dr. McBarron has a private practice in Georgia and cohosts a number one nationally syndicated health talk radio show "Duke and The Doctor," with her husband Duke Liberatore.
Socially Responsible Retailer Award (view Criteria)
The Socially Responsible Retailer Award recognizes Natural Products Association member companies that excel in integrating social responsibility in multiple aspects of their businesses including volunteerism, education, employee empowerment, environment and health. This year’s recipients are Central Co-op's Madison Market Natural Foods in Seattle, Washington, MOM's Organic Market, headquartered in Rockville, Maryland, and Native Sun Natural Foods Market inJacksonville, Florida.
Central Co-op's Madison Market Natural Foods
Seattle, Washington
Central Co-op's Madison Market is a community-owned natural foods co-op in central Seattle. Central Co-op promotes sustainability through mindful business practices that are democratically managed. The store values ethically cultivated, wholesome products and economic independence. The co-op exercises concern for community through partnerships with local nonprofits, forging social and environmental change that complements their values. As a cooperative, Central Co-op is guided by internationally recognized principles, including concern for community, which informs their strategic relationship with Black Dollar Days Task Force, Business Alliance for Local Living Economies Seattle, Community Alliance for Global Justice, and Sustainable Capitol Hill. One of the co-op's most recent accomplishments was co-hosting the first annual SLICE conference- Supporting Local Independent Co-ops Everywhere, a gathering of entrepreneurs interested in starting, maintaining, and expanding the long-term viability of strong, values-based cooperative business models as transformational alternatives to less sustainable models that prevail in the current economy.
MOM's Organic Market
Rockville, Maryland
MOM's Organic Market is a locally owned organic grocer with six stores locations. Each store features 100 percent organic produce, a full range of organic and natural groceries, sustainable seafood and an extensive wellness department with carefully selected products. MOM's institutes many sustainable practices to reduce impact on the environment. The stores and central office are run on 100 percent wind power. Each store uses green building materials where possible and features products by companies who use renewable green power. MOM's uses biodegradable packaging and composting to reduce waste, and provides a recycling service to all customers and employees. MOM's also offers its employees a "Green Benefits" package, which includes a $3,000 incentive for the purchase of a hybrid vehicle, 20 percent subsidy incentive to purchase Energy Star appliances and electric lawnmowers, and a "Green Household" package, which includes CFL bulbs, clothesline, and programmable thermostats.
Native Sun Natural Foods Market
Jacksonville, Florida
Native Sun Natural Foods Market was founded in 1997 with the goal of helping customers maintain a more healthful, organic lifestyle. The store offers fresh organic produce, grass-fed beef, nutritional supplements, and pet supplies. Customers enjoy a full-service deli, organic juice and smoothie bar, free store tours, educational seminars, and more. While giving back to the community has always been part of Native Sun's philosophy, the latest community effort, GreenApples Charity Program, was only formed in 2008. The program helps employees and customers raise funds and awareness for local groups in need, building a more sustainable environment for the local community, and facilitating volunteerism. Efforts included in the program are the store's Treecycle reusable bag program, free community events, donations to the local food bank, donations by customer request and a Charity of the Month program. In total, Native Sun's GreenApples Program has been able to donate over $27,250 in goods and services since 2008.
For photos of the 2010 award winners contact the association at Natural@NPAINfo.org.
