FTC Charges Gerber with False Advertising

Photo by Mario Tama/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — The Federal Trade Commission has charged baby food maker Gerber Products Co. with false advertising for claims that its Good Start Gentle formula will prevent or reduce a child’s risk of developing allergies.

According to an FTC press release, Gerber has advertised the product as having health benefits that it simply does not provide since 2011. “Parents trusted Gerber to tell the truth about the health benefits of its formula, and the company’s ads failed to live up to that trust,” Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection Jessica Rich said.

Among the claims that prompted the charges, Gerber’s ads state “you want your baby to have your imagination…your smile…your eyes…not your allergies,” and a separate sticker on the package that says the product is the “1st and ONLY Routine Formula TO REDUCE THE RISK OF DEVELOPING ALLERGIES.”

The FTC says Gerber has presented those claims as FDA-approved. In 2009, the FDA gave permission to Gerber to make a claim regarding one type of allergy — atopic dermatitis — but only if it qualified the statement to make clear that there was “little scientific evidence” for the relationship, according to the FTC.


Copyright 2014 ABC News Radio

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