Proprietary blend is something which is found on the nutritional labels of supplementary food. Proprietary blend simply means that the diet supplement has various 'health boosting' ingredients but there are no mention about the 'quantities' in which these are present. The reason for a 'proprietary blend' to be put on a supplementary food is to keep the amount and ratio of each ingredient in the formula as a 'trade secret' to prevent copying of the formula by other competitors. The proprietary blend can also be used by the product manufacturer in an attempt to hide the fact that the bottle of the supplement contains a scant quantity of the ingredients mentioned. Thus the usage of 'proprietary blend' is like a double-edged knife; there is a legitimate purpose as well as a purpose to dupe consumers. The supplementary foods which often have evidence of the ingredients not clearly displayed include many of the diet pills that are sold over the counter in many market retailers. Proprietary blend and the notion of keeping trade secrets is a topic of much dispute. Health experts argue that people taking the supplementary foods have no idea of what is actually in them, despite the ingredients being on the label. The crucial part, they say, is the amounts of each of the ingredients in the supplement, which is not included on the product label. Proprietary blend is a compromise between the business of the industry and the importance of keeping recipes safe and the need of the customer to know what they are consuming.
