Background
Summary of Council decision:
Three issues were investigated, all of which were Upheld.
Ad description
A press ad for Biovit Miracle Cranberry Tablets, seen in the Daily Mail on 13 October 2023, featured an image of a basket of cranberries. The ad was headed “Cranberry Miracle Advanced Bladder Support”. Further text stated “Formulated to promote a healthy urinary tract. Powerful drug-free natural remedy. Vegan-friendly for men and women. Act now. 50% off”. An image further down the ad featured a picture of the product, with text stating “HALF PRICE! CRANBERRY TABLETS. RRP £29.99 NOW ONLY £14.99 P&P. 30-DAY SUPPLY. NEW IMPROVED FORMULATION FOR 2023”. The ad also featured three testimonials from customers, who all praised the product for improving their bladder related issues. That included the claims “I have only been taking these ‘miracle’ tablets a short while and can’t tell you the difference they have made to my life. I went on holiday for a week and forgot to take them and was soon up 2 or 3 times in the night. As soon as I restarted them again, I was back in control” and “I kept my bladder problems a secret for years […] the Biovit Miracle Cranberry is so easy to use. I first noticed the difference a few days later when I felt more confident and didn’t even have to think about where the nearest toilet was”.
Issue
The complainant challenged whether the claims:
1. “powerful drug-free natural remedy”, and those within the testimonials, implied that the product treated or cured human disease, which was prohibited by the Code;
2. “advanced bladder support” and “promote a healthy urinary tract” breached the Code, because they were general health claims which must be accompanied by a specific health claim authorised on the Great Britain nutrition and health claims (NHC) register; and
3. RRP and “half price” were misleading and could be substantiated.
Response
1. Vytaliving Ltd said they had, upon receipt of the complaint, consulted an accredited nutritionist to review their ad. They subsequently acknowledged that the claim “powerful drug-free natural remedy” could imply that the Biovit Miracle Cranberry Tablets product treated or cured human disease. They said that the claims within the testimonials were genuine reviews by customers, but accepted they could be interpreted by consumers as being health claims. They said that although they believed there were relevant research papers to support both the claim “powerful drug-free natural remedy” and the claims in the testimonials for cranberry supplements, they acknowledged they were not reduction of disease risk claims authorised in the Great Britain nutrition and health claims (NHC) register. They provided links to those research papers, which were featured on several different science related websites.
2. Vytaliving acknowledged that the statements “advanced bladder support” and “promote a healthy urinary tract” in relation to cranberry supplements were general health claims which were not accompanied by a specific health claim authorised on the GB NHC register. They again stated that, because of the research papers referred to in point 1, they had initially thought the claims were acceptable.
3. Vytaliving acknowledged that they could not substantiate a recommended retail price (RRP) of £29.99 for the product. They said they had intended to sell the product for that price; however, it had only ever sold for £14.99. Although they admitted the RRP claim should have been updated, they believed the multi-buy packages they offered reflected a significant savings value for consumers. For example, they sold a pack of seven for £49.91, which equated to £7.13 per pack. Vytaliving believed that demonstrated that their half price savings claim, when considered in the context of bulk buying, was genuine. They said they had removed the £29.99 RRP claim from their advertising.
Assessment
1. Upheld
Claims which stated or implied a food could prevent, treat or cure human disease were prohibited under the CAP Code.
The ASA considered that consumers would understand the claim “powerful drug-free natural remedy”, within the context of promoting cranberry supplements for those with bladder issues, to mean the product could treat bladder related conditions. We also considered claims in the testimonials, such as “I have only been taking these ‘miracle’ tablets a short while and can’t tell you the difference they have made to my life” and “I first noticed the difference a few days later when I felt more confident” further implied the product could treat bladder related conditions. We considered that because the ad claimed that the product could prevent, treat or cure human disease, it breached the Code.
On that point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 15.6 and 15.6.2 (Food, food supplements and associated health or nutrition claims).
2. Upheld
The CAP Code defined claims which referenced the general benefits of a nutrient or food for overall good health or health-related wellbeing as general health claims. Such claims were acceptable only if accompanied by a specific authorised health claim.
We considered the claims “advanced bladder support” and “promote a healthy urinary tract” would be understood as references to general, non-specific benefits of the food supplements for the physical health of the bladder and urinary tract. The claims were therefore general health claims that needed to be accompanied by relevant specific authorised health claims. However, because the ad did not include any specific health claims that were authorised on the GB NHC Register, we concluded that it breached the Code.
On that point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rule 15.2 (Food, food supplements and associated health or nutrition claims).
3. Upheld
The CAP Code stated price comparisons must not mislead by falsely claiming a price advantage. Comparisons with recommended retail prices (RRPs) were likely to mislead if the RRP differed significantly from the price at which the product or service was generally sold.
We considered consumers would understand the claim “Act now. 50% off” and “HALF PRICE! CRANBERRY TABLETS. RRP £29.99 NOW ONLY £14.99” to mean that £29.99 was the genuine selling price at which the product was generally marketed and sold, and that consumers would therefore benefit from the stated saving by purchasing the product at the lower price of £14.99.
We understood that Vytaliving had only ever sold the product for £14.99. Although they stated consumers could save by bulk buying the product, we considered that was not relevant to the half price savings claim presented in the ad, which was on the basis of one unit of the product being purchased. We therefore concluded that the RRP and savings claim in the ad had not been substantiated and were misleading.
On that point, the ad breached CAP Code (Edition 12) rules 3.1 (Misleadingness), 3.7 (Substantiation), 3.17 (Prices) and 3.40 (Price Comparisons).
Action
The ad must not appear again in the form complained of. We told Vytaliving Ltd to ensure that their future ads did not state or imply that their food supplements could prevent, treat or cure human disease and not to make general health claims for their products unless they were accompanied by relevant specific authorised health claims. We also told them to ensure that references to RRPs reflected the price at which the products concerned were generally sold.
CAP Code (Edition 12)
3.1 3.7 3.17 3.40 15.2 15.6 15.6.2
