Nature's Sunshine Products


Nature's Sunshine Products, Incorporated, also known as "NSP", is a manufacturer and multi-level marketer of dietary supplements, including herbs, vitamins, minerals, and personal care products. It is based in Lehi, Utah, with a manufacturing facility in Spanish Fork, Utah.

History

Nature's Sunshine was founded in 1972 by Gene and Kristine Hughes, who started encapsulating capsicum in their home kitchen. The company employs a multi-level marketing business model in which their products are primarily sold to the consumer by independent distributors who receive commissions based on their own sales, as well as sign-up bonuses and commissions based upon the sales of any distributors they may have recruited.
The company is divided into various segments in the U.S., including a U.S. Sales division, a Spanish language division, and an International division which oversees the corporation's foreign subsidiaries.
NSP also owns Synergy Worldwide, a multi-level marketing company that also sells nutritional supplements. Products for both companies are manufactured in a production and research facility located in Spanish Fork, Utah.

SEC bribery lawsuit

On July 31, 2009, the company agreed to pay $600,000 in fines after being charged by the SEC with having bribed Brazilian officials with more than $1,000,000 in 2000 and 2001. This was done "so it could import unregistered nutritional products into the country, and then falsified its books to hide the payments."