As part of Nutraceuticals World’s 2026 State of the Industry review, Cal Bewicke, CEO of Ethical Naturals Inc. (ENI), discusses how supply chain uncertainty, tariffs, and global instability continue to challenge ingredient reliability. He explains how ENI’s proactive planning, collaborative supplier relationships, and commitment to clinically supported ingredients are setting a model for resilience in 2026 and beyond.

From the supply side of the industry, where Ethical Naturals stands, 2025 was an extraordinary year. Many of the factors that made it so will continue into 2026: uncertainty of supply condition is perhaps the biggest factor here. First, there was and is the tariff situation; this, when added to the general feeling of political instability and the effects of climate change, makes manufacturers, suppliers and customers uneasy. Where to find reliability?

As a supplier to key, quality-oriented industry companies these conditions presented real challenges for ENI that will continue into the year ahead. The core challenge was and is: how does a company continue to supply a flow of raw materials that meet high-level specifications and U.S.-based testing, without unpredictable cost increases or supply interruptions?

To achieve this going forward into 2026 took substantial changes in the operation of our supply chains that began several years ago. These changes require a greater level of financial investment in inventory and longer-term planning. We combine that with the reliability of long-term relationships based upon trust and cooperation with core manufacturer partners, foundations that have taken years to build.

Put these together and we expect to achieve our goal of steady, on-time supplies to our customers, with minimal cost increases. At least, as things stand right now.

It’s a matter of being ready. When tariffs were predicted we worked on projections with our customers and brought in very large quantities of inventory for them. We also began working with our suppliers to plan further ahead and place larger orders, thus reducing the costs on these manufacturers and enabling them to pass savings on to ENI, and we to our customers. It’s a kind of teamwork that will carry into the future, 2026, and beyond.

Demand for highly qualified, clinically studied and branded ingredients continues to grow, and will into 2026. The flow of generic ingredients from overseas are now a flood; many of these come at very low prices and with little knowledge of production methods or quality control. In difficult supply times, many companies turn to these to meet deadlines or price points.

However, the leading companies in our industry are looking to provide their customers with something superior to that. Thus, they often turn to branded ingredients with fully transparent sourcing, cGMP-certified supply chains and clinical studies that add to the knowledge and value of the ingredient.

To produce a branded ingredient in this way isn’t cheap, with in-depth testing and good, published clinical studies costing $200K or more. This is another substantial investment in developing a premium supply chain. Moving forward into 2026, the same principles of investment, exceptional quality control and careful planning will become even more important. At ENI we look forward to meeting the challenge.