What’s in a Wellness Product?

The Science & Regulatory
Wellness Portal

Here at goop, we recognize that we are in a unique position within the wellness industry, and because of this, we have both a responsibility and an opportunity to create the gold standard of quality around the ingestible products we sell to demonstrate their safety and efficacy.

We have a scientific and regulatory portal for vetting the ingestible products we sell at goop. Our world-class science and research team uses an evidence-based approach to screen products’ ingredients and claims.

We began by developing standards for our own goop wellness ingestible products. For example, for our goop-brand products, we follow current Good Manufacturing Practices (GMP) set forth by the FDA, source and test quality ingredients, and thoroughly substantiate our claims. We screen for additional factors above and beyond what most companies require and identify new standards and measures to raise the bar in terms of quality. For example, we are mindful of potentially harmful herbicide and pesticide residue, as well as sustainability.

Having developed these standards for ourselves, we partner with like-minded, quality-committed brands. We are requesting extensive documentation sets, including product testing, heavy metal testing, and claims substantiation from our partners.

Here are some of the ways in which we will deliver on our promise that our products are made and sold with integrity; we demand from our ourselves and ask of our partners the following:

Safety

We make sure our ingestible products will serve you well by:

  • Screening products to ensure that, while present in all plants, heavy metal levels are within safe parameters
  • Evaluating ingredient identity (to help prevent adulteration of botanicals and other nutraceuticals)
  • Requiring appropriate allergen disclosures
  • Requiring microbial testing

Efficacy

We will review relevant scientific literature to help ensure:

  • Accurate and truthful claims on our products (so you understand clearly why they work)
  • Our products contain consequential doses of nutraceuticals and botanicals, rather than a dusting (so you feel a difference)

Quality

The documentation we request includes:

  • Product Claims Substantiation
  • Accurate and Compliant Nutritional/ Supplement Facts Panel
  • Finished Product Testing
  • Allergen, Non-GMO, and Organic Documentation
  • Hazard Analysis and/or HACCAP Plan (where applicable)
  • Certificate of Origin
  • Prop 65 Compliant Label

Meet the Team

PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT

Thira Burns, MS, RDN Director, Product Development

Thira earned her bachelor of science from the University of California, Davis, and her master of science from San Jose State University. Thira is a registered dietitian with an academic foundation in nutritional science. She has over eight years of experience in product development and has managed the development of nearly one hundred evidence-based natural products.

David Le, MS Research Scientist

David earned his bachelor of science in clinical nutrition from the University of California, Davis, and his master of science in sports nutrition from the University of Colorado. His research experience focused on exploring the effects of nitrate supplementation on human physiology as well as conducting investigations of vitamin D status in elite athletes.

Sara Rodich, MS Research Scientist

Sara holds a bachelor of science in food science from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, and an master of science in food science from Chapman University. Sara has worked for several Fortune 500 companies, working in new product development and regulatory compliance for both food and dietary supplements.

SCIENCE & RESEARCH

Gerda Endemann, PhD Senior Director, Science & Research

Gerda holds a bachelor of science in nutrition from the University of California at Berkeley and a PhD in nutritional biochemistry from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. Her professional experience extends from scientific research and nutrition education to the dietary supplement industry. Gerda has conducted basic research on heart disease, fat metabolism, and nutrition in academic laboratories and in biotech, and she has served as an adjunct faculty member at Stanford University.

Jennifer Kovacs-Nolan, PHD Director, Science & Research

Jennifer holds a bachelor of science in biochemistry and advanced degrees, including a PhD, in food science from the University of Guelph, Canada. Her robust experience is illustrated in the 45 scientific papers, review articles and book chapters that she has authored which include examining the role of novel dietary proteins and peptides in modulating inflammation and immunity. Most recently, Jennifer applies this lens to product development within the dietary supplement industry and enjoys seeing her research manifested in quality products.

Leah Bedrosian, MPH Research Scientist

Leah received her BA in psychology and her master of public health in environmental epidemiology both from the University of Michigan. Her research background focused on maternal and child exposure to environmental toxins such as BPA, phthalates, and heavy metals.

COMPLIANCE

Zelda Beckford, MBA Director, Quality and Compliance

Zelda received her BA from Loyola Marymount University and her MBA from Webster University. She has more than fifteen years of experience in operations, supply chain, process improvement, quality assurance, quality control, manufacturing, product lifecycle management, business intelligence, warehousing, technical support, and IT systems design. Zelda spent the first ten years of her career gaining vast QA, QC, and regulatory knowledge on a global scale for a health and wellness conglomerate.