Cheerios Box Dishonest Says FDA
Wednesday, May 13, 2009 – Is Cheerios promoting false advertising?
A warning letter from the FDA was issued to General Mills ordering them to change how it markets the benefits that Cheerios provides for your health. The company claims that Cheerios can reduce cholesterol by a percentage point. There is a certain fiber in the whole grain oats that provide a reduction of coronary heart disease, but it can’t promote a claiming an exact percentage of reduction.
The letter to General Mills stated in it that they are responsible to ensure that the product is to be in compliance with the Act and its regulations, and if they don’t take action and fail to correct their violations the government may have to take action without and further notice.
Cheerios claims in six weeks your cholesterol by 4% according to the box. Their website claim in one month the cholesterol will be reduced by 10%. General Mills is standing by the claim, but said it will work with the FDA and their concerns.
These claims and their claim of Cheerios being cancer-fighting amount to be unauthorized health claims and according to the FDA these claims violate the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
The director of legal affairs for the Center for Science in the Public Interest, Bruce Silvergrade stated that the claims are misleading and it is just as bad as a doctor that gives out poor medical advice. The consumers are influenced by the labels and what they claim and they can be misleading.
The FDA does allow food companies to promote nutritional claims that are backed with scientific studies and they restrict the wording. With the food industry making healthy claims for different foods it helps increase sales to the consumers that are struggling with their diets and healthy way of living. The consumers are relying on honest facts that these manufacturers are claiming to have with their food that are supposed to help their health.
The toasted oat cereal came out in 1941 introduced as the first ready to eat oat cereal. In 1979 the honey nut flavor came out soon thereafter the apple cinnamon, frosted flavors and multigrain followed. For more than 2 years Cheerios has had the claim of lowering your cholesterol labeled on their box. Why has it taken this long for the FDA to threaten General Mills for this claim?
FDA calling a claim dishonest? This by an agency that is run by the pharmaceutical industry, albeit by lobbying (in principle, corruption). I get tired of their practice of promoting artificial cures without regard to natural sources. Perhaps if the cereal industry competed to line their (FDA) pockets with “green” such claims would be acceptable. If there should be any investigations, how about into the corrupt FDA itself.