The FDA has issued Cheerios a warning for a drug marketing violation.
The Cheerios ad says that in six weeks, "Cheerios could help lower your cholesterol 4%." By making this type of claim, however, the FDA says Cheerios becomes a drug and thereby needs approval before advertising the results.
General Mills, who makes Cheerios, says they were approved as a drug several years ago; however, the FDA maintains that they were not.
I say stock up on your Cheerios stash while you can--with the FDA mad at them, you never know what could happen!
Scandalous Cereals
FDA Scolds Cheerios for Hyperbolic Ad Claims
Trend Themes
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Regulatory Compliant Advertising — There is a rising need for regulatory compliant advertising in the food industry to avoid legal consequences.
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Functional Foods Marketing — The trend of marketing functional foods as a way to improve health and avoid chronic diseases continues to be popular in the food industry.
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Nutrition Science Advancement — There is a growing trend of investing in advancing nutrition science to bring credibility to food products that claim health benefits.
Industry Implications
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Food Manufacturing — Food manufacturing companies need to invest in nutrition science research to develop functional foods and market them in compliance with regulations.
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Healthcare — The healthcare industry needs to collaborate with food companies to advance nutrition science research and development of products that address chronic diseases.
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Legal — The legal industry will continue to work with food companies to identify legal risks of making advertising claims and to ensure regulatory compliance.