The Global Retailer and Manufacturer Alliance is an organization with broad industry support that is working to develop GMP standards for several product categories, including dietary supplements.
Some of GRMA’s key roles include strengthening safety, quality, and trust throughout the supply chain, ensuring consistency and proper training of auditors, reducing the number of audits and financial costs associated with audits, combining regulatory requirements and retailer quality requirements, as well as having all certifying bodies able to certify to the new standards.
GRMA’s new executive director, Allyn Shultis, shared how the organization is handling these duties, especially during a pandemic.
“It’s definitely a challenge, certainly. Especially given the circumstances of this year. I will say that we really started in a strong place, from where the GRMA is and that global outreach -- to manufacturers, to retailers, to a number of other health officials and those that are involved in the industry and have been able to maintain a strong group through the last six years. So it’s really been around communicating, trying to get out front and then take when we can, a helpful leadership role to support our members.”
Shultis took on his position in early August. Since then, he has collaborated with key industry stakeholders to create the GRMA’s Virtual Summit Series.
The series, “A Virtual Leap Forward”, provided the industry with several tools and resources given the challenges and marketplace changes facing the industry due to COVID-19. This series also enables thought leaders to share how technology is advancing both quality and compliance activities.
To hear more about GRMA’s certification process, what industry leaders revealed about their experiences with the Virtual Audits, and more, watch the full interview.