Statement of Alex Avery on Advertising Standards Authority (UK) Ruling on False Organic Claims
Where are the United States Regulators?
(PRWEB via PR Web Direct) March 4,
2005 -- On March 2, the UK’s Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) ruled that
the Soil Association, a trade and marketing organization that both campaigns for
and certifies organic food, must stop making the claim that organic food is
healthier than conventionally produced food. The ASA concluded that, "in the
context of a leaflet encouraging donations to help promote organic produce over
that produced by industrial farming, readers were likely to interpret the claim
'Organic farming produces healthy food' to imply that organic food was healthier
than non-organic food and eating organic food would have no harmful effects."
The Authority noted that the Soil Association "did not show organically-produced
food conveyed noticeable health benefits over and above the same food when
conventionally produced or that a diet of organic food could guarantee no
harmful effects." The Authority also ruled that organic is not more humane to
animals, as the Soil Association has claimed.
The issue of truthful and
non-misleading marketing of organic foods in the U.S. deserves similar scrutiny.
Extensive, publicly available research clearly indicates that U.S. consumers
mistakenly believe organic foods to be healthier, more nutritious or have other
qualities and claims for which there exists no scientific evidence or medical
support. These beliefs are being driven by false and misleading marketing by
U.S. organic products companies, their trade associations and the activist
groups they fund.
Where are the U.S. regulators to protect consumers?
Where are the industry and trade groups in protecting the reputation of U.S.
food and agriculture against these types of marketing claims? False and
misleading labeling and marketing of organic products with health, nutrition and
safety-related claims is pervasive. How can we avoid the damage to the
reputation of our food and agriculture industries among consumers in the U.S.?
Purveyors of organic products know that fear sells, and that is what they have
used time and again, attempting to impact consumer attitudes towards everything
from beef to milk to apples. It is the responsibility of our government and
industry standard setters to return the playing field to level and time to
protect American consumers from the organic myth.
We urge the U.S. Food
and Drug Administration, U.S. Federal Trade Commission, U.S. Department of
Agriculture and responsible food, grocery and farming organizations to address
this issue so that consumers are not misled into spending more of their limited
food budgets on products falsely marketed as healthier or safer, and to address
the damage caused to America’s traditional non-organic farmers who’s products
are falsely disparaged as less safe.
Resources:
http://www.cgfi.org
http://www.stoplabelinglies.com
http://www.milkismilk.com
http://www.milkismilk.com/blog.html
Contact:
Alex Avery
(540) 255-6378
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Source : http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb215245.htm