Ancient Nutrition does conduct testing on its products, but the brand does not carry the most widely recognized third-party certification seals like NSF Certified for Sport or USP Verified. The company publishes Certificates of Analysis (COAs) on its website for several product lines, which is a step toward transparency, though the details of who performs the testing and what exactly is screened for require a closer look.
What Ancient Nutrition Makes Available
Ancient Nutrition hosts a Certificates of Analysis page on its website where you can view COAs for specific product categories, including Multi Collagen Protein powders and Multi Collagen Protein capsules. A COA typically confirms that a product contains what the label says and may include results for contaminants like heavy metals or microbial counts. However, the page does not offer a search tool for individual lot numbers, meaning you cannot look up the exact batch of the product you purchased. This is a common limitation, but brands with stronger transparency programs do allow lot-specific lookups.
The COAs listed on the site indicate that some form of laboratory testing is being performed. What is less clear is whether the testing lab is truly independent or whether it is an in-house or contracted lab that the company selected and paid for directly. There is a meaningful difference between a brand commissioning its own lab tests and a product earning certification from an independent organization that sets its own standards and selects testing protocols.
No NSF or USP Certification
A search of the NSF Certified for Sport database, which is the gold standard for supplement testing (especially for athletes concerned about banned substances), does not return any Ancient Nutrition products. Brands like Thorne, Momentous, Klean Athlete, and Vital Proteins all appear in that database. NSF certification means a product has been independently verified for label accuracy, contaminant screening, and the absence of substances banned in competitive sports. USP Verified is another respected seal, and Ancient Nutrition does not carry that designation either.
If you are an athlete subject to drug testing, or if third-party certification is a hard requirement for you, Ancient Nutrition’s current testing program does not meet that bar.
Clean Label Project Testing
The Clean Label Project, an independent nonprofit that tests consumer products for industrial and environmental contaminants, has included several Ancient Nutrition products in its protein powder analysis. The specific products tested were Multi Collagen Protein in Chocolate, Vanilla, and Unflavored varieties, along with Multi Collagen Protein Joint + Mobility in Vanilla. The Clean Label Project tested 165 protein powders total across the category.
None of the Ancient Nutrition products appeared in the organization’s “Clean 16” top-ranked list. The Clean Label Project notes that not making the top 16 does not necessarily mean a product exceeds federal or state contaminant limits. It simply means it did not score among the highest in the category. Without a detailed scorecard for each product being publicly available at the time of testing, it is difficult to draw firm conclusions, but the inclusion in the study at least means the products have been subjected to independent contaminant screening.
Regenerative Organic Certification
One area where Ancient Nutrition has pursued meaningful third-party verification is in its farming practices. The company achieved Regenerative Organic Certified (ROC) status for farming operations owned by its founders in Tennessee and Missouri. The Tennessee farm, called the Center for Regenerative Agriculture, also serves as the company’s headquarters. ROC certification covers soil health, animal welfare, and fair labor practices, and it is administered by an independent certifying body. This is a legitimate and rigorous credential, though it speaks to how ingredients are grown rather than how finished supplements are tested for purity or potency.
What This Means for You
Ancient Nutrition falls into a middle ground that is common in the supplement industry. The brand does more than companies that publish no testing data at all. Publishing COAs and submitting products to the Clean Label Project both suggest a willingness to be evaluated. At the same time, the company has not earned the certifications that would give you the highest level of independent assurance, like NSF Certified for Sport or USP Verified.
If you are comparing collagen or protein supplements and third-party testing matters to you, look for products that carry one of those seals on the label itself. You can verify any claim by searching the NSF or USP databases directly. For Ancient Nutrition specifically, reviewing the COAs on their website is the best available option, keeping in mind that the scope and independence of that testing is not as transparent as a full third-party certification program would be.