To learn more about Costco Pharmacy, click on the “Pharmacy”
link at Costco.com or call toll-free 1-800-607-6861.
Commitment to quality
One brand’s
approach:
Centrum
Kirkland Signature vitamins,
supplements and the USP
UPDATE
PharmacyCOSTCO
ALL VITAMINS AND supplements are
required to meet the standards established by
the U.S. Food and Drug Administration
(FDA). Kirkland Signature™ dietary supplements go one step further. In addition to
meeting or exceeding FDA standards, their
quality is independently verified by the United
States Pharmacopeia (USP).
The USP is a nonprofit scientific organization with nearly 200 years of experience in
setting public standards for medicines and,
more recently, dietary supplements and foods.
The USP’s standards are recognized and used
in more than 130 countries around the globe.
The USP conducts rigorous tests
and audits to verify the identity, quality,
purity, potency, performance and con-
sistency of Kirkland Signature
dietary supplements. As part of
the review process, the USP con-
ducts thorough inspection audits
at the manufacturing site. These
audits determine whether compa-
nies are in compliance with all of
the “good manufacturing prac-
tices” (GMPs) required by both
the FDA and the USP. GMPs
ensure that sound, safe, sanitary
manufacturing practices are used
to produce dietary supplements,
covering six areas: proper quality
management, facilities and equip-
ment, materials, production, packaging and
labeling, and laboratory testing.
Under this program, tests are conducted
to identify the dietary ingredients and to confirm that the supplements contain a minimum of 100 percent of the quantity of the
dietary ingredients claimed on the label and
that their amounts do not exceed acceptable
upper limits. Dietary supplements are also
tested for acceptable levels of potentially
harmful contaminants, such as pesticides in
botanicals and PCBs in fish oil.
Only products that meet all of the USP’s
stringent requirements earn the USP Verified
The USP Verified Mark
assures Costco members that
the information stated on the
label is an accurate representation of what’s inside the bottle,
helping Costco members to
shop with confidence.
ducts thorough inspection audits
covering six areas: proper quality
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meet USP quality standards.
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helping Costco members to
WHAT ABOUT vitamin and supplement products at
Costco that are not
Kirkland Signature?
Centrum vitamins—Costco offers
four varieties in the
warehouses and on
Costco.com—are
good examples.
Similar to the
USP vetting process
that Kirkland Signature products undergo,
the quality-assurance procedure for
Centrum multivitamins rests on four key
pillars: product testing, product formulation, doctor recommendations and thorough study and evaluation. Often this
approach includes more than 1,900 standard operating procedures, spanning the
research laboratory and continuing
through manufacturing and supply to
Costco shelves.
The process begins with manufacturing practices that exceed standards
required for dietary supplements. In fact,
the makers of Centrum voluntarily apply
manufacturing practices established for
pharmaceutical products as the basis for
their quality-assurance program for
dietary supplements.
They also employ a strict supplier
quality management system to ensure
the identity, purity, strength and composition of ingredients used in each product, and use only those ingredients
permitted in dietary supplements based
on FDA regulations.
Furthermore, each Centrum multivitamin is backed by over one million hours
of ongoing research to advance product
development and design and to ensure
the formulations evolve and keep current
with the latest science and American
dietary patterns. Item #506232.
Health fairs
Costco pharmacies
frequently host
clinics to check
lung, heart or bone
health. Screenings
are free of charge
and include an
assessment of the
results as well as
suggestions for
prevention or treatment methods.
For dates and warehouse listings, go to
Costco.com and search “health fairs.”
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