By Amber, Supplements Buyer + Vitality Works Enthusiast
Hi, I'm Amber (she/they). I've worked at Cambridge Naturals for about three years now. I'm primarily a Supplements Buyer here (although I also do a lot of database work in the back office I affectionately call the Stat Cave).
At the beginning of August, my coworker Victoria (the brilliant soul behind our fabulous Bulk Herbs department) and I were afforded a very cool opportunity. We traveled to the state of New Mexico courtesy of Vitality Works, the company that makes our store-brand supplements, where we toured their production facilities in Albuquerque, visited a biodynamic farm northwest of Santa Fe, and spent several incredible days learning about the intricacies of the supplement manufacturing industry. We joined about forty other people from all areas of the health food and supplements industry - owners of small-town grocery stores from Washington State and Arkansas, co-op workers from Maryland, sales representatives from New York and Florida, and a number of Vitality Works' own team members - for a deep dive into the behind-the-scenes aspects of the industry. I can honestly say it was a time I'll never forget.
Upon arrival in New Mexico, we familiarized ourselves a bit with the local history and community. I hadn't quite realized how unusual Albuquerque is until I saw that the airport (or 'sunport', as they call it) features a specialized meditation room designed for quiet contemplation. As early as the 1920's, New Mexico has attracted eccentrics of all sorts, from writers like Jack Kerouac and DH Lawrence to musicians like Bob Dylan. They mingled with the centuries-old traditions of the local Indigenous and Latino communities, drawn by the soaring vistas and stark landscapes of the area. Hippies found their way there in the 60's, and over the decades Albuquerque became a nexus of new-age activity. Even now there's a thriving community that harmonizes the area's diverse background. In the Old Town, spheres of polished amethyst and rugged nuggets of local turquoise sit for sale beside local Catholic milagro votives; pamphlets promote guided hikes into the Sandia Mountains as well as Albuquerque's famous hot-air balloons; and green chiles (a local specialty) hang drying alongside merchandise from the television show 'Breaking Bad', which was filmed in the area. New and old bump shoulders in the city, but it rarely feels awkward. Indeed, as I came to realize over the next few days, this fusion of disparate elements is precisely what makes the herbal supplements industry fit so well here.
On our second day in New Mexico, we were treated to a tour of Vitality Works' production facilities. Led by founder Mitch Coven himself, we learned how their herbs are prepared--a process which is determined primarily by the needs of the herb itself. Certain herbs, such as echinacea, can take many years to grow, so planning must be done long in advance to ensure a good supply. Other herbs, such as Kava imported from Vanuatu in the South Pacific, are macerated in alcohol for a time to extract their beneficial qualities before being prepared into capsules or tinctures. There's a seasonality to the process as well--sometimes the facility will spend several intense days or weeks processing a particular herb to ensure they're able to capture its beneficial effects before they degrade. To further compound that, intense testing is done on every batch of product, not only to ensure the quality of the active ingredients, but also to verify the integrity of the products themselves. Defective tincture droppers are sorted out, leaky capsules eliminated. Quality control is a business that Vitality Works takes seriously. Witnessing their production system genuinely made me realize how much work goes into producing the supplements on our shelves.
The next day, we headed north on a bus to Abiquiu, not far from the Sangre de Cristo mountains and the Colorado border, to visit a biodynamic farm that supplies some of the herbs used in Vitality Works' preparations. Developed in the 1920's by Austrian philosopher Rudolf Steiner, biodynamics is a method of organic farming that treats soil fertility, plant growth, pest control, and harvesting as interrelated tasks, and views the process of farming from a holistic perspective. Amid the rows of crops -- St John's wort, dandelion, and spilanthes (to name a few) -- our group learned about the many potential pitfalls that farmers can experience. One year, the farmers watered their St John's Wort too much and it perished; another year, the local elk population ate a substantial portion of their crops. Even a well-prepared farmer can encounter obstacles.
Additionally, the climate of New Mexico is a challenging one to grow in. The region receives less than fourteen inches of rain per year (for comparison, Boston gets 43 inches yearly), so the soil is often dry, and managing to keep crops watered relies on a particular blend of innovation, traditional methods, and keen advance planning. Compounding that is the altitude -- Albuquerque itself sits a mile above sea level, so taking care of one's body, especially during outdoor work like farming, is imperative. (I had my first-ever experience with altitude sickness while there, and let me tell you, it was not fun.) Spending time at the farm truly impressed upon me the idea that farming is largely about what you can control versus what you can't.
I think the thing that stuck with me the most about our trip was the unique fusion of diverse factors that combine to make this aspect of the supplements industry so special. Custom-made 3D-printed machines process herbs grown with centuries-old irrigation methods. Careful planning and spontaneous adjustments influence every planting and harvest. High-tech and traditional, scientific and spiritual--so many contrasts that shouldn't work so well together but somehow do, combining to bring the benefits of herbal remedies to our store shelves in Cambridge.
Sometimes I feel that working amid so many sealed bottles and droppers, glass and metal and plastic, distances me a bit from the natural elements of the natural products industry. That week, holding a surprisingly damp, spongy osha root in my hands, or biting into a bitter dandelion root pulled from the ground moments before, I gained a renewed sense of the inherent wonder of the natural world.
And it is wonderful--I'd be remiss if I didn't mention how eye-wateringly gorgeous New Mexico is. Muted ochre hills dotted with sagebrush roll out beneath skies of such vivid blue it seems impossible that it's the same sky we see in Massachusetts. There were moments during our trip that I didn't even want to blink because it'd mean shutting my eyes for a second to the beauty of the place. I know now why New Mexico is called the Land of Enchantment -- for I am, perhaps always will be -- utterly enchanted by it.
Cambridge Naturals is supremely grateful to Mitch Coven and the entire Vitality Works team for this incredible opportunity!
