CRN reaches membership milestone — more than 100 voting members

WASHINGTON — The Council for Responsible Nutrition on Tuesday announced that its voting membership passed the century milestone mark with 101 companies, a new record for CRN. In addition, the number of associate — and international — members also is growing at a steady pace, bringing CRN’s total membership close to 150 member companies, the largest number of members in the association’s 41-year history.  

 

“Since the association’s start, CRN has been dedicated to addressing the industry’s biggest challenges and helping foster responsible, sustainable growth for the industry,” said CRN president and CEO Steve Mister. “Our members recognize that investment in CRN is an investment for the industry’s future. Fortunately, we are attracting serious companies that recognize even though our dues may be higher than other associations in the industry, they are comparable to, or lower than, the top dog associations in the food, OTC and pharmaceutical industries. It’s a case of you get what you pay for, and our members recognize we’re playing in the majors now.”

  

With concerns that CRN might have lost some potential members for whom the dues structure didn’t make sense, the association revised — and in some cases, lowered — its dues structure last July, and is now consistently seeing the benefits of that decision. CRN’s Carl Hyland, director of membership development, said, “The new dues structure has helped CRN experience this growth spurt, and we’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback, especially from those companies who had previously indicated interest, but shied away because of the cost. By adding new dues categories within voting membership, we’ve been able to rebalance the dues structure, address concerns about affordability, and attract a broader spectrum of companies. It’s a big tent over at CRN, and we’re excited to be representing so many new and vibrant companies, along with our long-term members.” 

 

At the same time, CRN has stepped up its representation of the dietary supplement and functional foods industry, the association noted. “New voluntary guidelines and calls for greater enforcement of existing regulations allow CRN members to distinguish themselves from competitors and to network with like-minded firms, while new research initiatives and a robust presence on Capitol Hill provide members with unique insights and opportunities to impact the future of the industry,” Mister said.