Botanic Tonics, the kava-centric leader in botanical supplements, today announced it has achieved ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation for its state-of-the-art testing facility in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. This prestigious accreditation, granted by Perry Johnson Laboratory Accreditation, Inc. (PJLA), confirms the technical competence and reliability of Botanic Tonics' in-house laboratory for biological and chemical testing, adding to the company's already robust quality assurance program that includes cGMP certification and FDA facility registration.
The ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation is widely recognized as the gold standard for testing and calibration laboratories worldwide, demonstrating that Botanic Tonics meets rigorous international standards for generating valid test results and operating a robust quality management system. This accreditation is particularly noteworthy in the dietary supplements industry, where obtaining ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation is an achievement that sets companies apart as industry leaders committed to exceptional quality standards.
"This accreditation represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to manufacturing excellence and product safety," said Jamal Bouie, Formulation Scientist at Botanic Tonics. "By bringing sophisticated testing capabilities in-house and having them independently validated to international standards, we can ensure even greater consistency, purity, and accuracy in all our products."
The scope of the accreditation includes critical testing methods for:
The ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation is widely recognized as the gold standard for testing and calibration laboratories worldwide, demonstrating that Botanic Tonics meets rigorous international standards for generating valid test results and operating a robust quality management system. This accreditation is particularly noteworthy in the dietary supplements industry, where obtaining ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation is an achievement that sets companies apart as industry leaders committed to exceptional quality standards.
"This accreditation represents a significant milestone in our ongoing commitment to manufacturing excellence and product safety," said Jamal Bouie, Formulation Scientist at Botanic Tonics. "By bringing sophisticated testing capabilities in-house and having them independently validated to international standards, we can ensure even greater consistency, purity, and accuracy in all our products."
The scope of the accreditation includes critical testing methods for:
- Pathogen detection (including salmonella, staphylococcus, E. coli and others)
- Heavy metals analysis (arsenic, cadmium, mercury, lead and iron)
- Kavalactone profiling (dihydrokavain, dihydromethysticin, desmethoxyyangonin, kavain, yangonin and methysticin)
- Kratom alkaloid testing (mitragynine, speciociliatine, speciogynine and paynantheine)
"This accreditation underscores our science-led approach to botanical supplements," said Charles Graffeo, Chief Operating Officer at Botanic Tonics. "While our facility has been FDA-registered and cGMP-certified through Intertek since November 2022, achieving ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accreditation takes our quality assurance program to the next level. It demonstrates our ability to produce not just consistent results, but technically valid ones that meet the highest international standards. This commitment to quality is reflected in everything we do — from our gamma irradiation process for sterilization to our multiple batch testing protocols."
The achievement places Botanic Tonics among a select minority of supplement companies nationwide with in-house ISO/IEC 17025:2017 accredited testing facilities. Obtaining this accreditation is an exceptionally rigorous process with stringent guidelines that few companies successfully complete. Botanic Tonics maintains an accredited in-house laboratory for testing — a rarity in the supplement industry where competitors typically rely on third-party facilities. This exceptional commitment to quality control provides Botanic Tonics with a significant competitive advantage.
The accreditation comes as Botanic Tonics continues to expand its retail footprint, now serving over 6 million product servings monthly through more than 24,000 retail locations nationwide. The company's feel free CLASSIC and feel free products are manufactured in a facility that adheres to the most stringent quality standards in the industry, with extensive testing for pesticides, aflatoxins, heavy metals, and microbiological contaminants using ultraperformance liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (UPLC-MS/MS) and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS).
"As our products reach more consumers, our responsibility to ensure their safety and quality only grows," added Graffeo. "This accreditation is not just a recognition of our current capabilities, but a foundation for continuous improvement as we push the boundaries of botanical science. From our R&D team's ongoing clinical studies to our meticulous quality control processes that aim to keep batch-to-batch variability within ±10%, we're committed to setting new industry standards for botanical products."
Unlike more common ISO 9001 certification, which applies to overall management systems, ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation is far more technically demanding and specific to laboratory testing competence. Industry experts note that the accreditation process requires demonstrating proficiency through rigorous inter-laboratory comparison testing, meticulous documentation, and stringent auditing of processes. While most supplement manufacturers rely solely on cGMP certification, which is required by regulations, the addition of ISO/IEC 17025 accreditation represents a voluntary commitment to quality that goes well beyond regulatory requirements.
For more information about Botanic Tonics and its commitment to quality and safety, visit botanictonics.com.
