The CITES Certificate: One Key to Finding Pure Hoodia Gordonii | Weight Loss

By ReaganMiers
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Anyone who has considered hoodia diet pills and has done any research on them has read about the importance of looking for a CITES certificate to identify authentic hoodia gordonii. I often wonder if people even understand what the certificate is and why it so important to look for one. If you have a basic understanding of what a CITES certificate is and what its role is within the hoodia trade, you'll know why looking for one is so important when trying to find authentic hoodia gordonii.

The hoodia gordonii plant is a protected plant that is in high demand. This cactus looking plant used to only grow in the wilds of South Africa. However, the increased demand for the plant, because of its weight loss properties, has prompted many people to begin farming the plant. This led South Africa to put regulations on the plant. Regulations that not only would protect the plant, but the San people who claim it as their native plant. There are controls in place that now regulate the growing, harvesting and exportation of the hoodia gordonii plant.

CITES certificates are one of the basic controls put in place to protect the endangered hoodia plant. There are other documents that are required as well, but for the purposes of this article I'll only address the CITES certificate. CITES refers to the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora and is an international agreement between governments. Their goal is to ensure that international trade does not threaten the survival of endangered species.

In order for a company to legally export hoodia gordonii from South Africa, an export permit from CITES must be obtained. Every shipment exported from South Africa must be accompanied by a CITES permit. These permits expire in six months, but the expiration period only pertains to the actual shipment of hoodia gordonii out of South Africa. In other words, a supplier has six months from the time they are issued a CITES permit to actually ship the hoodia gordonii out of South Africa. If they don't and the shipment of hoodia sits in the port, the supplier must reapply for a new permit.

A lot of people are confused about the dates on these CITES permits. Some people think if they are viewing a CITES permit and the date is old, this automatically means something underhanded or shady is going on with a company. All it really means is the expiration date for exportation has passed.

Suppose a supplier exports several thousand kilograms of hoodia on one permit, and that inventory of hoodia gordonii doesn't actually sell out for eight or nine months. The original CITES permit, along with the original issue date shown on the permit, will always be attached to that inventory. Even though the date on the CITES permit will be older than six months, that CITES permit is still valid and still provides proof that the hoodia gordonii used is authentic. Keep that in mind as you are looking at CITES certificates from companies you are considering buying from. An older date doesn't necessarily mean the CITES permit is invalid and the hoodia gordonii used isn't real.

It is also fairly common to see a name other than the company you are purchasing hoodia products from on the CITES permit. For instance, you may purchase your hoodia products from Company A, but Company B may be listed on their CITES permit. This is completely normal and it shouldn't make you question the integrity of a company.

Supplement companies purchase their hoodia gordonii from suppliers. Suppliers are the ones that are listed on the CITES permits. These are the companies that actually go in and export the hoodia out of South Africa. There are only a limited number of suppliers who can obtain CITES permits. In the above example, the ABC Company is the supplier of the hoodia gordonii to the XYZ Company.

It's important that you understand that just because a website display a CITES certificate isn't a guarantee that the company is packaging pure hoodia gordonii into their products. As you probably know, there are no regulations on supplements, so companies can make claims about their products, even if they may not be true.

That is not always true. Keep in mind that the only thing a CITES permit proves is that a supplier was given the right to export "X amount" of hoodia gordonii from South Africa. Once the supply is exported, the supplier and any company purchasing hoodia from the supplier can do what they want with the hoodia gordonii. A company may claim they are selling a hoodia diet pill that contains 500mg of authentic hoodia gordonii, and while they may have a CITES certificate for the supply they purchased, they may not use a full 500mg in each capsule! They may only use 250mg or 150mg or whatever may be the case.

Now that you have a better understanding of what the CITES certificate is and what its role is, you know why looking for one is important when trying to find authentic hoodia gordonii diet pills and products.

About the Author

Did you know that the CITES certificate is just one of thirteen items to look for when you purchase hoodia pills? Get the detailed list of what to look for and read reviews of the best hoodia here.

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