By mid–1996, another great wave drove a product called liquid colloidal minerals. At the time, a tape had been circulating called “Dead Doctors Don’t Lie,” which made extensive claims about the benefits of taking colloidal minerals. A multi-level company, again, did such a stupendous job promoting the product that many customers went to health food stores to find a lower priced, comparable product. Soon, NOW’s store customers were demanding a NOW product and we responded with a product called “77 Colloidal Minerals.” Sales started so strong that we sent out for a full, independent assay to make sure everything claimed by our vendor proved true. At the same time, a paper by Alexander Schauss, Ph.D. was circulated claiming colloidal minerals were unproven and contained unsafe levels of aluminum. While supply problems and quality issues were being addressed, customers kept ordering more colloidal minerals than we could stock. Eventually a trip was needed to help clear the air. On December 4, 1996, I visited the original Clark mine in Emery County, Utah to try to get more supplies from our vendor. It was also an opportunity to get a firsthand understanding of colloidal minerals and the factual history from “the source.” The Clark family had sold “Miracle Water” as early as 1926, naturally derived from humic shale deposits. The product sold slowly in early years, but received so many unsolicited testimonials that the business helped Thomas Clark survive the depression years. Apparently, all humic shale colloidal mineral products come from the same area in Utah and, after processing, the by-product is used by local farmers as a natural fertilizer. The visit to the mine was quite an experience and showed what vast mineral resources are available in places like Utah. Unfortunately, our alliance with the Clark family ended when we were able to source low–aluminum colloidal minerals elsewhere six months later. It was a good business move, but a sad day for me to walk away from my new friend, Bret Clark. Another wonder product peaked about that time called Klamath Blue-Green Algae, a whole food concentrate similar to spirulina. Another multi-level company, Cell Tech, did an outstanding job (again!) promoting the health benefits of a specific microalgae that grows in Klamath Lake, Oregon. Due to some negative publicity about a potential toxin in the lake, NOW sent Nick Rana to visit and get a first hand look at how our product was being processed. Nick took a boat out on the lake, collected pictures and talked to the suppliers about processing techniques and cleanliness. We were able to tell a true story firsthand about NOW selling a safe, quality product that was independently tested free of toxins. Klamath Blue-Green Algae had its dedicated followers who took the algae religiously, though like many good products it has had its heyday and now is on the mature side of a product’s life cycle. I wonder why good products have to have down cycles. It seems that if a product works, it should never decline, but always grow at least by word of month. If only life were so simple! A poor crop and concerns about pollution caused NOW to drop this product in 2012. 76 BEATING THE ODDS
