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> So yeah, take stuff from nature, patent it, then get the natural version banned, profit! That is a total mischaracterization of the situation. The patent on
by vonmoltke 11y ago
> So yeah, take stuff from nature, patent it, then get the natural version banned, profit!
That is a total mischaracterization of the situation. The patent on lovastatin was not on "stuff from nature"; it was on a way of reproducing "stuff from nature" in a controlled manner to guarantee purity and potency, and to put it in a form that can be made into pills.
- x0x0 11y agoNot to mention the supplements industry threw a giant tantrum to avoid regulation, and here's the fruits of their labors: The authorities said they had conducted tests on top-selling store brands of herbal supplements at four national retailers — GNC, Target, Walgreens and Walmart — and found that four out of five of the products did not contain any of the herbs on their labels. The tests showed that pills labeled medicinal herbs often contained little more than cheap fillers like powdered rice, asparagus and houseplants, and in some cases substances that could be dangerous to those with allergies. http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/new-york-attorney-general-targets-supplements-at-major-retailers/?_r=0 http://well.blogs.nytimes.com/2015/02/03/new-york-attorney-g...