Expert Corner
Vincent Deschandol
Botanist and Harvester
I’ve been harvesting for Boiron since I became a farmer — I did a bit of harvesting before that too — so it’s been about 20 years. We have a very good relationship with Boiron. It’s important to have a good connection with your client because then you know what your plants will be used for, especially since we’ve visited their lab several times. And it’s nice to have that human connection.
Boiron regularly audits us. Sometimes the people from the Purchasing Department come out with us into the field. They see the challenges — for example, this year there’s much less Arnica, and it’s good that they can see those issues for themselves when they happen.
Boiron’s quality requirements are pretty straightforward, and of course we follow them. It means washing your hands, harvesting on clean tarps, putting the plants in a clean van, and more recently, Boiron has become increasingly interested in the quality of the harvesting sites — for example, whether or not the land is certified organic. At our cooperative, we are 100% organic certified. And with certification comes inspections. If we want to prove that we’re harvesting in natural areas, that’s part of the process.
Dr. Khalil Taoubi
Scientific Advisor, Boiron
We have known about the benefits of Arnica for treating bruises and swelling for a very long time. And today we are still making the most of this plant’s remarkable anti-inflammatory, antioxidant, vasculoprotective, veinotonic, antimicrobial and antithrombotic properties.
Emeric Varvier
Quality Control, Boiron
The quality of the Arnica flowers and the extract we produce is at the heart of our work. As soon as they’re received, the fresh plants are inspected and then processed by a team of professionals as per Good Manufacturing Practices. Lastly, the extract is analyzed as per each country’s pharmacopoeia specifications in order to guarantee quality and reliability.
Françoise Merceron
Plant Purchaser, Boiron
If we take the case of Arnica, it’s a wild-harvested plant that grows naturally on French territory and in all the mountainous regions of France. It’s one of the most important supplies for the company because it’s used in many of our medicines.
In my role, what’s essential is building a relationship of partnership and loyalty with our harvesters in order to ensure the highest quality raw material. It’s important to know that we don’t change harvesters every year — many of our partnerships go back over 20 years.
At Boiron, our wild fresh plant harvesters must first and foremost be botanists. That means having deep knowledge of the plant world — many of the species found in France and, in some cases, abroad. It’s absolutely essential that the harvester respects which part of the plant is used, as defined in the national pharmacopoeias.
In the case of Arnica, we use the whole plant. It’s a species that requires great care when harvesting — you must always leave part of the plant in place so it can regenerate and ensure the resource is available for years to come.
I’m proud to work with harvesters who are above all botanists. They are true stewards of natural areas. This is essential to ensuring the quality and reliability of our raw materials.
