FAQ: Nothing Naughty Whey Protein & Drug-Tested Athletes

Does Nothing Naughty test its protein powders or bars for banned substances?

No. While we do not manufacture or handle products containing banned substances in our facility, Nothing Naughty does not currently conduct batch-by-batch testing for substances prohibited under the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) Prohibited List.

To provide the highest level of assurance for drug-tested athletes, products typically need to undergo ongoing batch testing through a recognised independent sports certification programme. While we have confidence in our ingredients, suppliers, and manufacturing standards, we do not currently offer anti-doping certification or WADA-compliant batch testing. This may be something that we explore at some point in the future.

Is Nothing Naughty Whey Protein suitable for athletes who undergo sports drug testing?

Nothing Naughty Whey Protein is made using premium whey protein sourced from Fonterra and contains a clean ingredient profile with no artificial colours, flavours, preservatives, or fillers.

However, our whey protein products are not batch-tested or certified through a recognised sports anti-doping certification programme such as Informed Sport or NSF Certified for Sport.

For this reason, athletes competing at elite, national or international level, or those subject to anti-doping testing, should discuss supplement use with their performance nutritionist, sports dietitian, team doctor, or sporting organisation before use. 

Why doesn't Nothing Naughty have a sports certification such as Informed Sport?

Third-party sports certification programmes require extensive ongoing testing of individual production batches to screen for substances prohibited in sport.

While we recognise the value of these programmes for elite and drug-tested athletes, the cost of implementing and maintaining batch certification would significantly increase the retail price of our products.

Our goal is to provide high-quality, clean-label protein products that remain accessible and affordable for the wider New Zealand community.

Does Nothing Naughty believe its whey protein is lower risk for athletes ?

Our whey protein is sourced from Fonterra, one of New Zealand's largest and most established dairy ingredient suppliers, providing full traceability of the primary protein ingredient. 

In addition our whey protein has a simple ingredient profile with no artificial colours, flavours, preservatives or fillers.

Our whey protein is manufactured using quality-controlled processes. 

However, because we do not conduct anti-doping certification or banned-substance batch testing, we cannot guarantee suitability for all drug-tested athletes.

Why is there still a risk with supplements, even when ingredients look clean?

Sport Integrity Commission Te Kahu Raunui (New Zealand's national anti-doping organisation) advises that all supplements carry some degree of risk. This is because contamination can occur during ingredient sourcing, transport, storage, or manufacturing, and prohibited substances may not always appear on product labels.

Under anti-doping rules, athletes are subject to the principle of strict liability, meaning they are responsible for any prohibited substance found in their sample, regardless of how it entered their body.

For this reason, no supplement can be considered completely risk-free unless it has undergone appropriate independent testing and certification for sport.

What does Nothing Naughty test for?

Nothing Naughty conducts quality and safety testing, including heavy metal testing of its protein and collagen products. 

You can read more about our heavy metal testing programme here:

Heavy Metal Testing in Protein & Collagen Powders

Heavy metal testing is designed to assess product safety and quality. It is different from anti-doping testing and does not screen for substances prohibited under the WADA Prohibited List. 

What should elite or drug-tested athletes do?

Athletes competing under anti-doping rules should:

• Follow the guidance of their sporting organisation and support team.

• Understand that all supplements carry some level of risk.

• Consider products that have been independently batch-tested through recognised sports certification programmes if minimising anti-doping risk is a priority.

Athletes can find more information through Sport Integrity Commission Te Kahu