GCI Nutrients: Offering a World of Opportunities

GCI Nutrients, Burlingame, CA, is a worldwide value-added raw material distributor that has been involved in the nutraceuticals business for over two decades. Founded in 1970 as an importer and supplier of bulk encapsulated essential fatty acids, it wasn’t until the late 1980s that GCI, under the direction of the company’s founder, Richard Merriam, ex­panded its product range to include nutraceuticals. Today, GCI prides itself on being a leader in sourcing and marketing new cutting edge products, which have helped drive the growth of the industry.

The company considers itself a leading supplier of nutraceutical and botanical raw materials from around the world to manufacturers representing the herbal, functional foods, dietary supplement, sports and pet/equine markets. With a network of international manufacturers and suppliers, GCI has been building partnerships with its customers and vendors by offering a robust product line, which includes a spectrum of 4000 nutraceutical and botanical raw materials from quality commodities to proprietary products. Some of GCI’s branded products in­clude ABG-Larch Arabinogalactans, Diehl’s Own Cetyl Myristoleate, EleutheroSure Siberian Ginseng, Gamma-E Vitamin E mixture, Ge-Oxy Organic Germanium, Liposerine Phosphatidyl Serine, LutiSure Lutein, LycoSure Lycopene, Olivir Olive Leaf Extract, PoliSure-99 Policosanol and RhodiolaSure Rhodiola Rosea.

To meet the dual challenge of being a quality supplier of nutritional raw materials and providing affordable pricing, GCI has recognized that it must be close to the worldwide sources of supply. As a result, it has developed a network of companies within the major botanical supply nations of the world—Brazil, China and India—whose botanicals are essential to the growth of the U.S. market.

This network supplies GCI with a complete range of products, which meet or exceed its rigid testing protocols. In addition, through this network of affiliates, GCI is supplied with the latest research and new products from these parts of the globe. Each affiliate works daily with the top suppliers in their respective country, requiring each supplier to meet GMP standards. “We believe these countries are the world’s botanical breadbasket, which is why we have established offices in these locations,” commented Mr. Merriam. “Working through these international offices, it is GCI’s goal to interact directly with producers and manufacturers who pass GCI’s plant inspections and comply with GMP standards. Only those facilities with the proper extraction equipment, testing labs and trained personnel qualify as a production partner. GCI monitors all the testing protocols and verifies the quality of each lot before shipment. This control assures our customers that all products GCI delivers meet their expectations.”

GCI opened branch offices in Vancouver, Canada in 1996; in Bombay, India in 1997; in Sao Paulo, Brazil in 1998; and in Shanghai, China in early 1999. “It is clear to us that by getting close to the source and knowing the growers, producers, manufacturers and shippers of our raw materials we can honestly maintain the quality and integrity of our products,” added Mr. Merriam. “To complete the GCI network of affiliated companies, our plans are to open additional offices in key consumer markets in the near future.”

“Today, the market is dramatically evolving as more and more competitors have entered the nutraceuticals market, and GCI welcomes the entry of legitimate suppliers to further the industry’s development,” said Mr. Merriam. “To meet this competitive challenge, GCI has adopted a new strategy, which will provide improved customer service to our valued partners and assure GCI’s aggressiveness and growth into the 21st century,” he said.—T.W.


GCI Nutrients
1501 Adrian Rd.
Burlingame, CA 94010
Telephone: 650-697-4700
Fax: 650-697-6300
E-mail: rickm@gcinutrients.com
Website: www.gcinutrients.com; www.nutrientlibrary.com