Profile - Nature's Way
The history of a company can not only influence its culture, but it can often define its very soul. As such, the origin of Nature's Way is an incredibly unique story within the nutrition and dietary supplement industry. As one of the few original health food industry pioneers still in operation, the company has been in business since 1969.
The company was not founded, funded or owned by pharmaceutical giants, public shareholders or investment bankers. Rather, the motivation for Nature's Way is rooted in a family's desperate need to address a personal health crisis. Tom Murdock, the original founder of what is now Nature's Way, sought a solution to help his gravely ill wife. Fresh out of conventional options, he turned to the Native American knowledge of the plants in the Arizona desert. And as the saying goes, the rest is history. Not only did Tom's wife recover from her illness, but she lived an additional 25 years.
A few year's after the Murdock family's discovery, word had spread among friends, family, and the Southwestern U.S. community. What other treasures grew in the Arizona desert? Tom Murdock and the newly formed Nature's Way team were about to find out. As a result, eight simple herbal products were soon offered to health food shops in the local market. The original products were crude in their formulation, packaging and marketing, but significant as icons of the power of Mother Nature. And these products were nothing less than the foundation of the renaissance of the herbal supplement industry in America.
Industry Leader
Over the last three and a half decades, Nature's Way has pioneered more than just herbal and nutritional science. The company is a recognized leader among all of the nutritional and dietary supplement companies in America. Our list of "firsts" is extensive, and many of them pioneered the way retailers, consumers, industry, competitors, and even government viewed herbal and nutritional supplements. Here are a few of the things of which we are the most proud:
- First nutritional products manufacturer with a state-of-the-art, pharmaceutically licensed facility
- First major certified organic producer
- First to bring significant European phytomedicines (plant based medicines) to market
- First to spend more than a million dollars on legislative efforts to protect health freedoms
- First industry recognized GMP (good manufacturing processes) facility
- First to fund major third party organizations to responsibly disseminate health information and ensure quality
More than Just a Business
Nature's Way has a rich tradition of giving back. The company's business success has translated to success outside of the day-to-day operation. Over the years, it has been done in various ways and in varying amounts, but the fundamental belief has not changed. The company is fortunate to operate in essentially a "green" industry, and causes from environmental protection to local community programs have been an important part of Nature's Way's mission. The projects over the years have included:
- Founding donor of groups to protect the world's rain forests, with most of the successful work in Samoa and Southeast Asia.
- Vitamins for the poor in developing nations.
- Donations to fund raisers for breast cancer and other chronic diseases.
- Support for self reliance programs for the homeless in select western U.S. cities.
- Sponsorship effort to provide complete holiday support for local Latino children.
- Support for local youth and adult athletic leagues, including the Nature's Way women's soccer team.
"Trust the Leaf"
The company logo for Nature's Way is a green leaf. It symbolizes health, life, and nature. The accompanying slogan invites the world to "Trust the Leaf." It's more than just words on paper. It's the creed that the company operates by everyday. "Trust the Leaf" is taken seriously by everyone in the Nature's Way organization. The company strives to manufacture the very best possible nutritional products for human consumption. It starts with the initial trust of our retailers and affiliated business partners. This trust has been earned by decades of working hard to responsibly advance the supplement industry. It ends with the trust of satisfied consumers whose expectations have been exceeded. The company knows that millions of people rely on Nature's Way products for the maintenance of good health. It's a legacy and a pledge that is sacred. That's what it means to "Trust the Leaf."
Nature's Way Today
Today Nature's Way is located at the pristine base of the Wasatch Mountains in scenic Springville, Utah. The company is now one of the largest and most technologically advanced of all supplement manufacturers in the United States. This unusual marriage of nature and science lives in harmony within the Nature's Way organization. The company offers over 500 premium nutritional and natural products. The product line includes single herbs, herbal extracts and formulations, full line vitamins and minerals, high potency branded vitamins, homeopathic products, and various specialty products for a wide range of health concerns.
