Finding Pure Hoodia Gordonii and the CITES Certificate
If you are thinking about taking hoodia diet pills to help you with your weight loss, you probably know that CITES certificates differentiate pure hoodia gordonii from inferior hoodia products. Yet, I wonder how many people truly understand what the CITES certificate really is and why it’s so important. As a consumer I want you to know what the certificate is and what it means within the hoodia market.
The hoodia gordonii plant is a protected species due to its limited supply and high demand. It is only found in South Africa and until recent years, was only grown wild. Due to the increasing popularity for hoodia gordonii, farming began in an attempt to keep up with skyrocketing demand. In order to protect the hoodia plant and the industry as a whole, including the San people who have a vested interest in their native crop, the South African government implemented controls, licenses, and regulations for the harvesting and exportation of hoodia gordonii.
As a consumer, one of the regulations that you should know about is the CITES certificate. While there are other documents involved in the hoodia gordonii trade market, I am going to limit this article to the discussion of the CITES certificate. CITES stands for the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora. The certificate serves as an international agreement between countries that, in essence, protects the plant from being threatened due to trade.
In order for a company to legally export hoodia gordonii from South Africa, an export permit from CITES must be obtained. Every shipment exported from South Africa must be accompanied by a CITES permit. These permits expire in six months, but the expiration period only pertains to the actual shipment of hoodia gordonii out of South Africa. In other words, a supplier has six months from the time they are issued a CITES permit to actually ship the hoodia gordonii out of South Africa. If they don’t and the shipment of hoodia sits in the port, the supplier must reapply for a new permit.
This is important to understand because there is some confusion in the hoodia industry about the dates shown on CITES permits. People are led to believe that CITES permits must be “current” in order to be valid, otherwise they don’t mean anything. They mistakenly believe that if the CITES certificate is older than six months the company must be lying or must be trying to pull a fast one on the consumer. In some instances an “old” CITES certificate may be just that, but it is not necessarily the rule.
Suppose a supplier exports several thousand kilograms of hoodia on one permit, and that inventory of hoodia gordonii doesn’t actually sell out for eight or nine months. The original CITES permit, along with the original issue date shown on the permit, will always be attached to that inventory. Even though the date on the CITES permit will be older than six months, that CITES permit is still valid and still provides proof that the hoodia gordonii used is authentic. Keep that in mind as you are looking at CITES certificates from companies you are considering buying from. An older date doesn’t necessarily mean the CITES permit is invalid and the hoodia gordonii used isn’t real.
It is also fairly common to see a name other than the company you are purchasing hoodia products from on the CITES permit. For instance, you may purchase your hoodia products from Company A, but Company B may be listed on their CITES permit. This is completely normal and it shouldn’t make you question the integrity of a company.
Supplement companies get their hoodia from supply companies. Suppliers are the companies that actually go in, obtain the CITES permits and export the hoodia gordonii out of South Africa. The country is selective on giving out CITES permits and they limit the number of exports. It only makes sense that supplement companies would use a supplier to obtain their hoodia gordonii. That is why you may see a name other that the company you are purchasing your products from listed on the CITES permit.
Finally, just because a CITES certificate is displayed on a website doesn’t mean the company uses as much authentic hoodia gordonii as they claim. Hoodia products are classified as supplements so they are not regulated. As a result, companies can make claims that aren’t necessarily true. For example, you may be interested in a hoodia diet pill that contains 500mg of hoodia gordonii per capsule. You go to the company′s website and sure enough, they display a CITES permit so you immediately think the product is authentic.
All the CITES permit is meant to convey is the supplier had permission to export a certain amount of hoodia gordonii out of South Africa by a certain date. Once it arrives at the companies that are packaging hoodia products, they can do whatever they want with it. They can claim they are selling a pill that is 500 mg of pure hoodia gordonii, but it may only contain 150mg or 250mg.
Now that you have a better understanding of what the CITES certificate is and what its role is, you know why looking for one is important when trying to find authentic hoodia gordonii diet pills and products.
