When you compound a natural progesterone cream as effective and competitively-priced as ours it you invariably start to get inquiries from abroad and requests to have creams sent overseas. Some of these requests we accommodate, most we choose not to.
The number one reason of course is…
1. It’s Against the Law
Natural Progesterone Cream is classified in Australia as a Schedule 4 (“S4”) prescription-only medicine. This means that we cannot dispense and supply it without an original prescription from an Australian doctor, and in most cases someone overseas does not have this prescription. The law appears to be different in other countries, however please keep in mind that possession in Australia is also governed by this law in case you are considering purchasing from overseas.
But supposing there was a way around the law. Would we really want to send our cream overseas? Well for starters,…
2. We Don’t Know Whether Our Cream Travels Well Overseas
Compare this with the thousands of tubs of cream we have packed and sent domestically over the years, with no reported loss of efficacy, no separating of the base cream, etc. We just don’t know what effect sitting above the hot airport tarmac or below-freezing temperatures while flying will have on the composition of the cream.
From what we have seen it’s a pretty resilient cream, but you just don’t know, and this is not something we are looking to test any time soon. Also,…
3. Hormone Therapy Requires Ongoing Monitoring by your GP
So even if you managed to get a prescription from an Australian doctor while overseas, and you weren’t concerned about any possible impact of having your cream flown overseas to you, there’s still the matter of ongoing monitoring of your progesterone levels which is an essential component of hormone therapy.
As you may know, this is typically a painless blood/saliva/urine test, the results of which will determine the strength and quantity prescribed by your GP.
But we don’t only receive inquiries from individual customers overseas, we also receive inquiries from wholesalers and distributors in various countries. And actually, the above law doesn’t apply if you manufacture for export. However,…
4. Going Into Exporting Would Force Us to Lose Focus
We have built a reputation over the years as a compounder of a great quality cream at a very competitive price, and we are very careful to avoid anything that will damage this reputation. We have remained extremely focused on the Australian market while we have watched other compounders go into manufacturing for export overseas at the expense of their local Australian customer base (of course, we are glad to pick up the slack when these customers turn to us instead!)
From climate considerations when choosing a base cream to being knowledgeable about the kinds of concerns Australian customers tend to have, we are proud of our knowledge of the local Australia market and the focused service we continue to provide.
Oh yes, then of course there is the small matter of…
5. Increased Prices for Australian Customers
We have observed dramatic increases in prices being charged to Australian customers by any compounder of Natural Progesterone Cream who makes the move into exporting. I mean, it’s not surprising that there are increased costs related to the various different compliance and quality standards required by all the different countries, the (fancy-pants) packaging, labeling requirements, the temperature-controlled freight, currency fluctuations, etc.
However, as to why these costs are passed on to the Australian consumer,… actually I don’t have a good answer for that. What I do know is that we have looked into manufacturing for export a couple of times and the conclusion we always come to is that we don’t want to take on the risk at the expense of our loyal Australian customers. We have been extremely encouraged by the response so far, and look forward to servicing you to the best of our ability for several decades to come.
Justin & Mike
PS If you’re in Australia, have a prescription for Natural Progesterone Cream from an Australian GP, and are looking to have it filled please take a look over here! We may have what you are looking for 🙂