Nutrition Business Journal Awards Industry Leaders for Impressive 2011 Accomplishments

BOULDER, CO--(Marketwire - Jan 16, 2012) - The nutrition industry's most impressive leaders and movers-and-shakers for 2011 have been named in Nutrition Business Journal's (NBJ) annual Business Achievement Awards issue, published this month. Recipients of the NBJ Business Achievement Awards will be publically honored at the 15^th annual NBJ Summit, July 24-27.

NBJ is the premier publication for the nutrition, natural, organic, dietary supplement and integrative medicine industries. The NBJ Awards give recognition to the industry's biggest leaders who have made a significant impact in the fields of health, wellness and nutrition.

For efforts on behalf of the nutrition industry, Michael McGuffin is honored for his tireless advocacy and service through American Herbal Products Association (AHPA). McGuffin is a leading voice in the industry on New Dietary Ingredient guidelines and AHPA was the first trade association to proactively address the concerns surrounding geranium extracts in sports supplements.

DSM wins a Scientific Achievement award for publishing two significant studies on its trans-resveratrol product, resVida as a calorie-restriction mimetic. The studies provide much needed credibility for an often overhyped class of ingredients.

A committed team of four executives at Annie's Homegrown receive the Management Achievement award. John Foraker, Sarah Bird, Robert Kaake and Mark Mortimer have collectively positioned Annie's towards an IPO and increased sales growth by 22 percent.

Investment in the Future Award goes to Embria Health Sciences, makers of immune health ingredient, EpiCor. The company executed an economic impact study in their hometown of Ankeny, Iowa on city employees during cold and flu season. The city's human resources department reported a 28 percent reduction in doctors' visits and 26 percent reduction in cold and flu symptoms, thus furthering the financial validity of an integrative healthcare approach through the use of supplementation.

Receiving an award for Education is Jeffrey Bland, chief science officer for Metagenics and president of MetaProteomics. For more than 25 years, Bland has been an internationally recognized leader in the nutritional medicine field with expertise as a nutritional biochemist. He is the former professor of biochemistry at the University of Puget Sound, and a previous director of nutritional research at the Linus Pauling Institute of Science and Medicine. Bland was the first member of the board of trustees of Bastyr University, the first federally accredited university in the United States offering graduate and undergraduate degrees in natural medicine, and contributed significantly to its founding and accreditation.

Lunberg Family Farms is honored with a Sustainability award for its longstanding commitment to the environment, its new award-winning sustainable headquarters and its leadership role in the Non-GMO Project.

For building a company from the organic ground up and sticking to that mission despite a horrible recession, Nicole Dawes and the company she founded, Late July Organic Snacks, are recipients of an Organic Excellence award. Standard Process also gets a nod for Organic Excellence for its 420-certified organic acres in Wisconsin that has produced 6.5 million pounds of vegetables for use as ingredients in supplements.

Bob and Charlee Moore, founders of Bob's Red Mill, are honored with a Philanthropy award for donating $25 million to Oregon Health & Science University, establishing the Bob and Charlee Moore Institute for Nutrition and Wellness. The goal of the institute is to halt the rampant health problems caused by unhealthy eating and inadequate nutrition through cutting-edge research and community outreach.

Three companies are recognized for growth including: Herbalife, VMI Nutrition and Justin's Nut Butter. For outstanding stock performance, Hansen's Natural is honored. Ten companies are recognized for their involvement in the most impactful nutrition industry deals of 2011, including: DSM's purchase of Martek Biosciences Corporation for $1.1 billion; Glanbia plc's acquisition of Bio-Engineered Supplements and Nutrition for $144 million; Dupont's purchase of Danisco for $6.5 billion; Pfizer's sale of Capsugel to KKR & Co. for $2.4 billion; Hain Celestial's purchase of Daniels Group for $230 million; Danone's purchase of the nutrition unit of India's Wockhardt Group for $344 million; Ganeden Biotech's sale of its BC30 supplement brands to Schiff Nutrition International for $40 million; Henry Farmers Market's merger with Sprouts Farmers Market to create a super-natural retailer with 98 stores and $1 billion in sales; GNC's IPO in April for $360 million; and GarMark Partners, Northwood Ventures and Stockton Road Capital forming Athena Wellness Brands to purchase Designer Whey from NEXT Proteins.

NBJ publisher Patrick Rea, along with editor-in-chief Marc Brush, will honor all award recipients at the NBJ Summit in Dana Point, Calif. The recipient of the 2011 Lifetime Achievement award will also be announced. Last year's Lifetime Achievement recipient was Al Powers, president of NOW Foods. For more information about the NBJ Summit visit www.nbjsummit.com. To subscribe to NBJ visit: www.newhope360.com/nbj.

Through a portfolio of media products, including a monthly executive journal and in-depth research reports, NBJ supplies authoritative data and analysis to leaders and decision makers in the nutrition business. NBJ also provides strategic consulting services to many of the top companies in the industry. To request a free issue of NBJ visit: www.newhope360.com/nbj.