Mannatech#Company-funded studies

Mannatech was founded by Samuel Caster in 1993, as Congress prepared to pass the Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act of 1994, which made feasible the profitable marketing of a wider spectrum of dietary supplements.{{cite news|last1=Geraghty|first1=Jim|author-link1=Jim Geraghty|title=Ben Carson's Troubling Connection|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/396193/ben-carsons-troubling-connection-jim-geraghty|access-date=October 30, 2015|work=National Review|date=January 12, 2015}} The company has had a Christian orientation since its founding; the name was intended to evoke manna, and it recruited people to sell its products through its multi-level marketing structure in church congregations. Prior to founding Mannatech, Caster had founded and run Eagle Shield, an insulation manufacturer, and Electracat, a pest control device; both were categorized as a hoax by the Texas Attorney General's office.{{cite news|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/investigations/watchdog/20131123-watchdog-mannatech-founder-banned-from-company-still-works-from-inside.ece|title=Mannatech founder, banned from company, still works from inside|last=Lieber|first=Dave|date=November 23, 2013|work=Dallas Morning News|access-date=March 3, 2014}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/SB111542290501327322|title=Manna From Texas|last=Brammer|first=Rhonda|date=May 9, 2005|work=Barron's|access-date=2018-05-26|publisher=Dow Jones & Company|language=en-US|url-access=subscription }}

Mannatech was founded to sell dietary supplements and personal care products. Before developing its own products, the company sold Manapol, an aloe vera extract made by another company.{{Cite news|url=https://www.dmagazine.com/frontburner/2006/10/re-mannatech/|title=Re: Mannatech|last=McGill|first=Adam|date=2006-10-18|work=D Magazine|access-date=2018-10-20|language=en-US}} Its most widely known product has been Ambrotose, a dietary supplement made from sugars derived from plants.{{cite web | author=Mannatech, Incorporated | title=Form Mannatech, Incorporated: 10K SEC Public Filing for FY 2005 | publisher=United States Securities and Exchange Commission | date=March 16, 2006 | url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1056358/000119312506056564/d10k.htm | access-date=May 23, 2010}}

From 1993 to 2009, Rafael Cruz, father of presidential candidate Ted Cruz, was a top salesman for Mannatech.{{cite web|last=Twohey|first=Megan|title=Ted Cruz's Father Worked With Supplements Maker Sued by Investors|work=The New York Times|date=April 29, 2016|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2016/04/30/us/politics/rafael-cruz-mannatech.html|access-date =April 30, 2016}}{{cite web|last1=Dubose|first1=Lou|last2=Harper|first2=Hannah|title=Ted Cruz's dad has a very sketchy resume: Rafael Cruz's credentials are exaggerated, at best |work=Salon|date=October 19, 2015|url=https://www.salon.com/2015/10/19/ted_cruzs_dad_has_a_very_sketchy_resume_rafael_cruzs_credentials_are_exaggerated_at_best/|access-date =April 30, 2016}}

Mannatech had its initial public offering (IPO) on February 16, 1999, at $8 a share. The stock price settled a few weeks later at a price of $15.13 a share and a market capitalization of $366 million. The IPO raised $12 million in funds to be used for expansion into Australia and the U.K.{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/SB919740829313789000|title=Mannatech, a Hot IPO Last Week, Now Leaves Some Analysts Cold|last=Weil|first=Jonathan|date=February 24, 1999|work=The Wall Street Journal|access-date=2018-10-20|language=en-US}}

The company came to be known for unproven claims that its products could be used to treat many diseases and conditions, including cancer, diabetes, autism and AIDS.{{cite news | title=Nobel Prize winners say sites falsely cite research | author=Danny Robbins|work=Fort Worth Star-Telegram | date=September 10, 2006 |url = http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/nation/15486298.htm|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20061206191858/http://www.dfw.com/mld/dfw/news/nation/15486298.htm|archive-date=2006-12-06}}{{cite news | last=Sataline | first=Suzanne | title=Health Claims by Sales Force Boost Supplement Firm; Mannatech's Products Attract the Gravely Ill; Disclaimers on Labels | work=The Wall Street Journal | url=https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB117884606430799400 | date=May 11, 2007 | access-date=July 8, 2007 }}{{subscription required}} There is no evidence that any of these claims were or are true.{{cite web | publisher=Memorial Sloan–Kettering Cancer Center | title=Glyconutrients | date=November 23, 2015 | access-date=August 22, 2017 | url=http://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/herb/glyconutrients}}{{cite journal | journal=Glycobiology | title=Wielding the sword of professional ethics against misleading dietary supplement claims |vauthors=Torok CB, Murray TH | year=2008 | volume=18 | issue=9 | pages=660–663 | doi=10.1093/glycob/cwn060| doi-access=free }}{{cite journal | journal=Science | title=Who Owns Glycobiology? | author=Jocelyn Kaiser | year=2007 | volume=318 | issue=5851 | pages=734–737 | doi=10.1126/science.318.5851.734 | pmid=17975043| s2cid=153952585 }}{{cite news|url=https://abcnews.go.com/2020/story?id=3228488|title=Cure for Your Disease or Empty Promise?|last1=Avila|first1=Jim|date=June 1, 2007|work=Yahoo!-ABC News Network|access-date=July 8, 2007|publisher=ABC News Internet Ventures|last2=Martz|first2=Geoff|last3=Paparella|first3=Andrew}}{{cite journal |vauthors=Schnaar RL, Freeze HH | title=A 'Glyconutrient Sham' | journal=Glycobiology | year=2008 | volume=18 | issue=9 | pages=652–657 | doi=10.1093/glycob/cwm098 | pmid=17855741 | doi-access=free }} {{open access}}{{cite journal|last1=Schnaar|first1=Ronald L|last2=Freeze|first2=Hudson H|title=A "Glyconutrient Sham" and the Jenner Glycobiology and Medicine Symposium|journal=Glycobiology|volume=27|issue=5|year=2017|pages=383–384|issn=0959-6658|doi=10.1093/glycob/cwx024|pmid=28384366|doi-access=free}}{{cite web |title=Bounceback by Mannatech |url=https://www.truthinadvertising.org/bounceback-by-mannatech/ |publisher=Truth in Advertising |access-date=June 22, 2018 |date=December 7, 2017}}{{cite news |last1=Schultz |first1=Hank |title=Mannatech sales slide; warning letter questions meaning of 'glyconutrients' |url=https://www.nutraingredients-usa.com/Info/About-us |access-date=June 22, 2018 |publisher=NutraIngredients |date=November 28, 2017}}

In May 2005 an article was published in Barron's questioning the company's business practices.{{cite news|url=https://www.barrons.com/articles/SB111542290501327322|title=Manna From Texas|last=Brammer|first=Rhonda|date=May 9, 2005|work=Barron's|access-date=June 22, 2018}} In September 2005, a class-action lawsuit was filed against Mannatech for alleged violations of the Securities Exchange Act; it was prompted by the Barron's article.{{cite web |title=Case Page: Mannatech, Inc. Securities Litigation |url=http://securities.stanford.edu/filings-case.html?id=103504 |publisher=Securities Class Action Clearinghouse |access-date=22 June 2018 |language=en}}

In 2006, Mannatech distributor Vivienne Balonwu, a U.K. general practitioner, was found by the U.K. General Medical Council panel to have "abused her power as a doctor" after it was determined that she had illegally promoted and sold the company's products to people as a treatment for medical conditions such as chronic obstructive pulmonary disease and stroke-related complications. Following patient complaints about her marketing of the products in 2006, Balonwu was dismissed by her employer, Harmoni, a medical services company, and the GMC panel imposed a 15-month penalty period during which she was "to avoid private or short term locum work" and "to complete a supervised personal development plan to tackle shortcomings in her practice".{{cite journal|last1=Dyer|first1=Owen|title=GP advised patients to take pills made by company she worked for|journal=BMJ|date=March 29, 2008|volume=336|issue=7646|page=689|doi=10.1136/bmj.39532.350729.DB|pmc=2276256|pmid=18369218}}

Also in 2006, Mannatech was named #5 on Forbes’ list of America's 200 Best Small Companies.{{Cite news|url=https://www.forbes.com/2006/10/12/best-small-companies-biz-cz_06200best_jg_1012bestintro.html|title=America's 200 Best Small Companies|last=Gage|first=Jack|date=2006-10-13|work=Forbes|access-date=2018-10-20|language=en}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/lists/2006/23/biz_06200best_Mannatech_9Q1M.html|title=The 200 Best Small Companies: #5 Mannatech|date=2006-10-12|website=Forbes|access-date=2018-10-20}} At the same time, the company came under investigation by the Texas Attorney General in October 2006 for alleged violations of that state's Deceptive Trade Practices Act.{{cite news | last=Greenberg | first=Herb | title=Texas Attorney General probing Mannatech | publisher=MarketWatch, Inc. | date=October 27, 2006 | url=http://www.marketwatch.com/story/texas-attorney-general-probing-mannatech | access-date=July 8, 2007}} In July 2006, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott formally charged Mannatech, MannaRelief, Sam Caster, and Reginald McDaniel, the company's medical director, with operating an illegal marketing scheme in violation of state law.{{cite web|title=State of Texas v. Mannatech et al|url=https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/newspubs/releases/2007/070507mannatech.pdf|access-date=January 29, 2015|date=July 5, 2007}}{{cite web | title=Texas Attorney General Charges Mannatech with Unlawful, Misleading Sales Practices | publisher=Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott | date=July 5, 2007 | url=https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/oagnews/release.php?id=2086 | access-date=July 8, 2007}}

A 20/20 undercover investigation that aired June 1, 2007 on ABC Television showed Mannatech's sales associates teaching sales recruits how to target Mannatech products to people with specific illnesses in a manner that purportedly does not violate U.S. federal law, including U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, by avoiding direct claims that the products cure any particular diseases.

In August 2007, Caster resigned as CEO of Mannatech. In October 2007, it was reported that the company had fired Grant Thornton LLP as its auditor after the accounting firm demanded that Mannatech remove Caster from all responsibilities{{cite news | author=Sataline S | title=Caster Resigns as CEO of Mannatech | work=The Wall Street Journal | url=https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB118775074805504989 | access-date=April 6, 2008 | date=August 22, 2007}}{{cite news | author=Sataline S | title=Mannatech Fires Its Auditor Amid Dispute Over Founder | work=The Wall Street Journal | url=https://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB119275727764064354 | access-date=April 6, 2008 | date=October 19, 2007}}{{subscription required}} to be replaced by Wayne Badovinus as the new chief executive. Several corporate initiatives were undertaken, but after 17 months on the job Badovinus resigned in December 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/business/headlines/20091203-Mannatech-CEO-quits-after-17-months-8793.ece|title=Mannatech CEO quits after 17 months on the job|last=Roberson|first=Jason|date=December 4, 2009|website=Dallas Morning News|access-date=December 27, 2009}} Another member of the board resigned shortly after.{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a5xYbUsQhtik|title=Mannatech Announces Board Resignation (press release)|date=December 24, 2009|website=Bloomberg|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502005106/https://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=newsarchive&sid=a5xYbUsQhtik|archive-date=May 2, 2014|url-status=dead|access-date=December 27, 2009}} Mannatech's Chief Science Officer Robert Sinnott and Mannatech's chief financial officer Steve Fenstermacher were named Co-CEOs.{{cite news|url=http://www.streetinsider.com/Management+Changes/Mannatech+(MTEX)+CEO+Badovinus+Resigns/5158529.html|title=Mannatech (MTEX) CEO Badovinus Resigns|last=Blitzer|first=David M.|date=December 3, 2009|work=StreetInsider.com|access-date=November 28, 2010}} Fenstermacher later resigned.{{cite news|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/news/mannatech-announces-resignation-co-ceo-214724914.html|title=Mannatech announces the resignation of co-CEO, CFO Stephen Fenstermacher|date=December 16, 2011|work=Theflyonthewall.com|access-date=May 21, 2012|publisher=Yahoo Finance}}

Publicity over the company's lawsuits began to damage the balance sheets and stock performance. After profits of $32 million in 2006 and $6.6 million in 2007, Mannatech reported a $12.6 million loss in 2008 and a $17.3 million loss in 2009.{{cite web|url=http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2010/08/02/daily23.html|title=Mannatech's profit narrows net loss, sales decline|last=Panchuk|first=Kerri|date=August 4, 2010|website=Dallas Business Journal|access-date=August 12, 2010}}

Mannatech settled the civil complaint with the State of Texas in February 2009; Mannatech did not admit wrongdoing but agreed to pay $4 million in restitution to clients who purchased products and $2 million to the state to cover its costs in the case. In addition, Sam Caster agreed to pay a $1 million civil penalty and steer clear of any type of leadership position or employment relationship with Mannatech for five years.{{cite news|url=http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/022709dnbusmannatech.77ae57d.html|title=Mannatech, former CEO settle with state|last=Roberson|first=Jason|date=February 26, 2009|work=Dallas Morning News|access-date=February 26, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090228124106/http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/022709dnbusmannatech.77ae57d.html|archive-date=February 28, 2009}}{{cite news | title=Mannatech Settles with Attorney General | work=Dallas Business Journal | url=http://www.bizjournals.com/dallas/stories/2009/02/23/daily52.html | date=February 26, 2009 | access-date=February 26, 2009}}{{cite web | title=Texas Attorney General Abbott Reaches Agreement To Halt Deceptive Trade Practices | work=Attorney General of Texas Greg Abbott | date=February 26, 2009 | url=https://www.texasattorneygeneral.gov/oagnews/release.php?id=2858 | access-date=August 31, 2013}}

In March 2008, Mannatech settled the class-action lawsuit by agreeing to pay $11.25 million to the plaintiff class. As part of the settlement, Mannatech admitted no wrongdoing.{{cite news|url=https://www.law360.com/articles/50818/mannatech-settles-investors-suit-for-11m|title=Mannatech Settles Investors' Suit For $11M|last=Caulfield|first=Christine|date=March 21, 2008|work=Law360|access-date=June 22, 2018|language=en}}

2010 losses were $10.6 million.{{cite web|url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1056358/000105635811000007/form10-k_12312010.htm|title=Mannatech Inc 2010 Annual Report - Form 10-K|date=March 10, 2011|website=EDGAR|publisher=U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission|page=34|access-date=May 15, 2012}} As the company's market capitalizations continued to fall, S&P Indices dropped it from the S&P 600 Index, stating "They are no longer representative of the small cap market space."{{cite news|url=http://www.standardandpoors.com/servlet/BlobServer?blobheadername3=MDT-Type&blobcol=urldocumentfile&blobtable=SPComSecureDocument&blobheadervalue2=inline;+filename%3Ddownload.pdf&blobheadername2=Content-Disposition&blobheadervalue1=application/pdf&blobkey=id&blobheadername1=content-type&blobwhere=1245240193696|title=Standard & Poor's Announces Changes to U.S. Index (press release)|last=Blitzer|first=David M.|date=November 26, 2010|work=The McGraw Hill Companies|access-date=November 26, 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402122312/http://www.standardandpoors.com/servlet/BlobServer?blobheadername3=MDT-Type&blobcol=urldocumentfile&blobtable=SPComSecureDocument&blobheadervalue2=inline%3B+filename%3Ddownload.pdf&blobheadername2=Content-Disposition&blobheadervalue1=application%2Fpdf&blobkey=id&blobheadername1=content-type&blobwhere=1245240193696|archive-date=April 2, 2015|format=PDF|url-status=live}} Recruiting efforts continued dropping in 2011, widening company losses to $20.6 million.{{cite news

| author=Press Release | url=http://www.thestreet.com/story/11474483/1/mannatech-reports-fourth-quarter-and-year-end-results.html

| title=Mannatech Reports Fourth Quarter And Year End Results | access-date=April 1, 2012 | work=Business Wire | date=March 28, 2012}} For 2012, the company's net loss narrowed to around $1 million from the about $21 million loss the year before.{{cite web|title=Mannatech Form 10k For the fiscal year ended December 31, 2012|url=https://www.sec.gov/Archives/edgar/data/1056358/000114036113014220/form10k.htm|publisher=SEC Edgar|page=37}} In 2013, it had around $3 million in net income, and in 2014, it reported profits of $6.5 million and total revenue of $190.1 million.{{Cite news|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/ben-carson-has-had-ties-to-dietary-supplement-firm-that-faced-legal-challenge-1444057743|title=Ben Carson Has Had Ties to Dietary Supplement Firm That Faced Legal Challenge|last=Maremont|first=Mark|date=2015-10-05|work=Wall Street Journal|access-date=2018-10-20|language=en-US|issn=0099-9660}}

In November 2017, Mannatech received an FDA warning letter for illegally marketing several of its supplement products as medicinal agents and for selling adulterated and misbranded products in violation of Title 21 of the Code of Federal Regulations and Good Manufacturing Practice regulations for dietary supplements.{{cite web|url=https://www.fda.gov/ICECI/EnforcementActions/WarningLetters/2017/ucm585515.htm|title=FDA Warning Letter to Mannatech, Inc.|last=Garcia|first=Edmundo Jr.|date=November 14, 2017|website=U.S. Food and Drug Administration|access-date=June 22, 2018}} In December 2017, Mannatech reached an agreement with the Town Council of Flower Mound, Texas, to relocate its headquarters to an existing facility in the city.{{Cite web|url=http://www.crosstimbersgazette.com/2017/12/05/flower-mound-approves-agreement-with-mannatech-for-new-hq/|title=Flower Mound approves agreement with Mannatech for new HQ|last=Pry|first=Lyn Rejahl|date=December 5, 2017|website=The Cross Timbers Gazette|language=en-US|access-date=2018-10-20}}

Starting in 2004, neurosurgeon and conservative politician Ben Carson made videos and spoke at company events promoting Mannatech and its products. In 2004, in a speech at a Mannatech event, he credited the company's products with the disappearance of his cancer symptoms.{{cite news|last1=Jim|first1=Geraghty|title=Carson to Newsmax: 'I Didn't Know Anything About all [Mannatech's] Legal Stuff.'|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/campaign-spot/396562/carson-newsmax-i-didnt-know-anything-about-all-mannatechs-legal-stuff-jim|access-date=January 24, 2015|work=National Review|date=January 16, 2015}}

Carson's image still appeared on the Mannatech's website in 2014,{{Cite news|url=https://www.cnn.com/2015/10/29/politics/ben-carson-mannatech/index.html|title=Ben Carson had extensive relationship to Mannatech|last=Grabow|first=Chip|date=October 30, 2015|work=CNN|access-date=2018-06-23}} and in the same year he praised their "glyconutrient" supplements in a PBS special (The Missing Link – The Science of Brain Health), sponsored by a group of Mannatech distributors, that was subsequently featured on the site.{{cite news|last1=Geraghty|first1=Jim|title=Ben Carson's Troubling Connection|url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/396193/ben-carsons-troubling-connection-jim-geraghty|access-date=November 2, 2015|work=National Review|date=January 12, 2015}} During the CNBC GOP debate on October 28, 2015, Carson was asked about his relationship with Mannatech and denied any involvement with the company.{{cite web|last=Ford|first=Matt|title=Ben Carson's Mannatech Problem|work=The Atlantic|date=October 29, 2015|url=https://www.theatlantic.com/politics/archive/2015/10/ben-carson-mannatech/412987|access-date =October 31, 2015}} Politifact rated Carson's denial of any involvement as "false".{{cite news|author1=Lauren Carroll|title=At debate, Ben Carson says he has no connection to Mannatech|url=http://www.politifact.com/truth-o-meter/statements/2015/oct/29/ben-carson/debate-ben-carson-says-he-has-no-connection-mannat/|access-date=October 30, 2015|work=Politifact|date=October 29, 2015|quote=As far as we can tell, Carson was not a paid employee or official endorser of the product. However, his claim suggests he has no ties to Mannatech whatsoever. In reality, he got paid to deliver speeches to Mannatech and appeared in promotional videos, and he consistently delivered glowing reviews of the nutritional supplements.}} In November 2015, Mannatech said on its website that, for compliance with Federal campaign finance regulations, the company had removed all references to Carson before he announced his bid for the presidency.{{cite web|title=Mannatech's Response to Question at GOP Presidential Debate

|work=Mannatech website|date=November 3, 2015|url=http://allaboutmannatech.com/mannatechs-response-to-question-at-gop-presidential-debate/|access-date =November 9, 2015}}

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