Randy Hartnell of Vital Choice on Cod, Pollock and Fermented Cod Liver Oil

Since August 23, when I published my special report Hook, Line and Stinker, many people have stepped up to thank me for investigating and reporting on the Green Pasture Fermented Cod Liver Oil (FCLO), a product that many people believe has damaged their health, but which has been heavily promoted over the past eight years by Sally Fallon Morell and the Weston A Price Foundation.  I want to thank these people for offering their support and sharing their stories.  I will be publishing many of their thoughts in the weeks to come.

I would particularly like to thank Randy Hartnell of Vital Choice Wild Seafood and Organics, who firmly yet graciously replied to a woman who expressed anger over my investigation and its possible consequences for the Weston A. Price Foundation.  I am publishing Hartnell’s letter with his permission.

Dear _____,  Thanks very much for taking the time to go into such detail about your concerns. It sounds like you’ve got your mind pretty well made up so I realize that anything I say may be of little consequence.

We have been very strong supporters of the Weston Price foundation for more than a dozen years. I believe you would be hard-pressed to find another company that has been more supportive by way of cash and product donations, or by promoting the annual conferences to our significant customer base. This is one reason I am a Weston A Price Foundation Activist Award recipient.

Since I founded Vital Choice in 2001, I have had a very strong interest in nutritional science. I have attended scores of related conferences around the world, and had the pleasure and honor of developing friendships with top nutrition and lipid scientists. I am not a scientist myself but hang out with quite a few of them so have a rich network to whom I can readily turn with related questions.

People I know have tested the FCLO and expressed confidentially to me that they would never personally consume it based on the extreme oxidation levels. These are experts in the field who have no agenda other than the truth and public well-being. I firmly believe these are Dr. Daniel’s objectives as well.

The fact that the product in question has been mis-branded and mis-marketed as having been derived from one species (Gadus macrocephalus) when it is clearly another (Gadus chalcgorammus) speaks to the integrity of the vendor wouldn’t you say? I have been in the seafood industry for more than 30 years and can tell you that this type of bait-and-switch fraud is very common in the seafood business, as it is relatively easy to perpetrate on unwitting consumers. Part of the reason I founded Vital Choice was to provide a level of product quality and integrity that is all too rare in the seafood industry, so I have very little respect for the people who victimize consumers in this way. And consumers aren’t the only victims of this type of fraud. If you are a cod fisherman and somebody else is mis-labeling their cheap, inferior pollock as cod, he wins and you lose. Having been a fisherman who suffered at the hands of this kind of deceit, i have nothing but disdain for such bad actors.

Furthermore, I’ve never run across anyone within the seafood industry who would mistake cod for a pollock or vice versa. It seems to me that only someone with a financial interest in confusing the two would attempt to make that ridiculous case.

I believe your characterization of Dr. Daniel is extremely misguided, as are the conclusions you’ve reached and accusations you are making as a result. I have been aware of this unfolding story for more than a year and can tell you that Dr. Daniel’s primary objective is the well-being and best interests of the Weston Price community that she has for so long and so faithfully served. I would suggest that you may want to reserve judgment, as I believe the truth will eventually prevail.

I hope you find my perspective at least ‘food for thought.’ We have hundreds if not thousands of fans in the Weston Price community. We have little to gain and much to lose by coming down on the wrong side of this issue. The ‘safe’ thing for us to do would be to keep quiet and wait it out, but we will not be bullied, coerced, or intimidated by anyone into sacrificing our principles and integrity. With what I know, I believe Dr. Daniel and others are highly worthy of our support and until evidence convinces me otherwise, we will continue to provide it.

Sincerely,

Randy Hartnell

Founder & President

Vital Choice Wild Seafood & Organics

Have you read Hook, Line and Stinker: The Truth about Fermented Cod Liver Oil yet?  Learn how lab tests show this product is rancid, low in fat-soluble vitamins . . . and not even cod!  Click here to get your free download.