LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)-- Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) today announced that Vasilios H. Frankos, M.S., Ph.D., will retire from the FDA in March and join the company as senior vice president, product compliance and safety, effective April 2010. Frankos is currently the director, division of dietary supplements programs, Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition (CFSAN), at the Food and Drug Administration. He will report to the company's General Counsel Brett Chapman.
Frankos, one of the country's foremost authorities on dietary supplements, has more than two decades experience in creating policies and standards for safe and effective dietary supplements and ingredients, and led efforts in developing good manufacturing practices (cGMPs) and Serious Adverse Events Reporting.
"Bill Frankos exemplifies Herbalife's commitment to providing science-based nutritional supplements of the highest quality available in the marketplace," said Michael O. Johnson, Herbalife chairman and CEO.
In his most recent position at FDA, Frankos served as director, division of dietary supplements programs, CFSAN, directing and coordinating policy, budget, personnel and administrative activities. He advised on policy and management issues on dietary supplement programs, new dietary ingredient safety assessments and related activities pertaining to dietary supplements. He is responsible for full implementation of the DSHEA Act of 1994 to ensure the safety and truthful labeling of dietary supplements and supported legislative compliance, enforcement and public affairs initiatives.
During his tenure, Frankos published a final rule for dietary supplement Good Manufacturing Practice requirements (cGMPs), and worked with FDA field offices to coordinate and evaluate inspections of over 2,000 facilities. He also led efforts on reporting serious adverse events associated with dietary supplements by implementing the Dietary Supplement and Nonprescription Drug Consumer Protection Act. He was a key player in reviewing new dietary ingredient notifications, overseeing function claim notifications and served as CFSAN's lead scientist for dietary supplements and as a toxicology expert on the National Toxicology Program (NTP) Toxicology Study Selection Review Committee.
Before joining the FDA, Frankos was a principal with ENVIRON for over 18 years, providing consultation on FDA and EPA product registration and the toxicological and pharmacological evaluation of data used to assess the risks posed by foods and food additives, drugs, medical devices, cosmetics, pesticides, and environmental and occupational exposures.
Frankos has presented on FDA policies on dozens of occasions and has authored numerous papers on dietary supplements. He holds a Ph.D. in pharmacology and toxicology from University of Maryland Pharmacy School; an M.S. in molecular biology and a B.A. in biology from University of Maryland.
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About Herbalife Ltd.
Herbalife Ltd. (NYSE:HLF) is a global network marketing company that sells weight-management, nutrition, and personal care products intended to support a healthy lifestyle . Herbalife products are sold in 72 countries through a network of over 1.9 million independent distributors. The company supports the Herbalife Family Foundation and its Casa Herbalife program to help bring good nutrition to children. Herbalife's Web site contains a significant amount of information about Herbalife, including financial and other information for investors at http://ir.herbalife.com. The company encourages investors to visit its Web site from time to time, as information is updated and new information is posted.
Source: Herbalife Ltd.
Released Jan 19, 2010 • 4:10pm EST