It's an ironic twist that Pom Wonderful, which once sued a competitor for misrepresenting its product, is now the target of an FTC administrative complaint for...you guessed it -- making false claims about its products. Sad, but true.
The Federal Trade Commission has issued an administrative complaint charging the makers of POM Wonderful 100% Pomegranate Juice and POMx supplements with making false and unsubstantiated claims that their products will prevent or treat heart disease, prostate cancer, and erectile dysfunction.
Showing posts with label bogus claims. Show all posts
Showing posts with label bogus claims. Show all posts
Monday, October 18
Wednesday, May 5
Gerber Graduates Juice Treats - You Oughta Be Ashamed!
Gerber Graduates Juice Treats, a product "for preschoolers", according to its label, contains bright pictures of fresh fruit on its label: oranges, grapes, raspberries, peaches, pineapple, cherries. To further the impression that this product is a healthy and natural fruit smorgasbord, the label also says "FRUIT MEDLEY" in bold blue letters, followed by this list:
natural cherry, grape, orange, pineapple, peach and raspberry flavors with other natural flavors
Sounds yummy and healthy, to boot, right?
Well, not so much. These "Treats" - despite plain language on the label to the contrary - apparently contain NO ORANGE, NO CHERRY, AND NO PINEAPPLE AT ALL. NONE. NADA. ZIP. Instead, the treats contain less than two percent raspberry and apple juice concentrate. The main ingredients? Corn syrup and sugar.
natural cherry, grape, orange, pineapple, peach and raspberry flavors with other natural flavors
Sounds yummy and healthy, to boot, right?
Well, not so much. These "Treats" - despite plain language on the label to the contrary - apparently contain NO ORANGE, NO CHERRY, AND NO PINEAPPLE AT ALL. NONE. NADA. ZIP. Instead, the treats contain less than two percent raspberry and apple juice concentrate. The main ingredients? Corn syrup and sugar.
Wednesday, March 24
Walgreens Not Immune From False Advertising Claims
No one is immune from paying a price for deceptive advertising. Someone always pays: either the consumer who is fooled, or the company that made the product, or even the seller, if they get caught.
The FTC announced this week that it had settled a complaint against Walgreens:
The FTC announced this week that it had settled a complaint against Walgreens:
National pharmacy chain Walgreens has agreed to pay nearly $6 million to settle FTC charges that the company deceptively advertised “Wal-Born” – a line of dietary supplements similar to the Airborne cold-and-flu treatment – using the same kind of baseless claims that the supplements could prevent colds, fight germs, and boost the immune system.
Saturday, March 13
FDA Says: "What's Good for the Goose..."
Well, I am filled with chagrin. Just a little.
You may recall that a couple of summers ago, I praised Pom Wonderful for going after a competitor who advertised its fruit juice deceptively by claiming it contained more or different fruit than it really did. They won that case, standing on the important principle that the claims a company makes in its advertising ought to be truthful. Well, that was then, and this is now.
On February 23, 2010, the FDA issued a warning letter to Pom Wonderful for what the FDA says are "serious violations" of federal drug and food labeling laws. The FDA says, basically, that all the health claims Pom Wonderful makes on its websites mean the product is being used and marketed as a drug to treat, cure, or prevent diseases, and since it has not been approved for those purposes by the FDA, the advertising claims are unlawful.
You may recall that a couple of summers ago, I praised Pom Wonderful for going after a competitor who advertised its fruit juice deceptively by claiming it contained more or different fruit than it really did. They won that case, standing on the important principle that the claims a company makes in its advertising ought to be truthful. Well, that was then, and this is now.
On February 23, 2010, the FDA issued a warning letter to Pom Wonderful for what the FDA says are "serious violations" of federal drug and food labeling laws. The FDA says, basically, that all the health claims Pom Wonderful makes on its websites mean the product is being used and marketed as a drug to treat, cure, or prevent diseases, and since it has not been approved for those purposes by the FDA, the advertising claims are unlawful.
Friday, March 5
Nice to have you back, FTC!
The Federal Trade Commission announced yesterday it is distributing $3 million in refunds to consumers who purchased infrared saunas and nutrition supplements from Roex, Inc. based on false advertising claims about the benefits of using the products. Imagine that?! An FTC that actually gets money back for consumers who are the victims of bogus claims in an infomercial! This is a very good thing.
Monday, June 9
Pomegranate Juice, or Not So Much?
This summer, Pom Wonderful LLC, a Los Angeles, California based company, won a lawsuit against its chief competitor, Purely Juice, Inc., claiming that Purely Juice's label claims of "100% Pomegranate Juice" are not 100% true. In its lawsuit, Pom Wonderful claimed that Purely Juice was selling adulterated, imported pomegranate juice and deceptively marketing it as pure pomegranate juice. The Los Angeles federal court ruled in Pom's favor. Nice to see a victory for truth in advertising. There's no question it's an unfair advantage for companies to put false claims on their labels. Clearly, Pom Wonderful thought its competitor was not competing fairly.
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