Swisse rolled by TGACRP
March 7, 2012
HIGH profile vitamin supplier
Swisse Products - which has been
conducting major marketing
campaigns featuring high profile
celebrities such as Sonia Kruger and
“Bondi Vet” Dr Chris Brown - has
been forced to withdraw a number
of its TV commercials as well as its
“Tired? Stressed? You’ll feel better
on Swisse” tagline.
The move appears to indicate a
new, more aggressive stance by the
Therapeutic Products Advertising
Complaints Resolution Panel, with a
number of claims about the Swisse
range of supplements
comprehensively dismissed in a
ruling made public yesterday.
The decision, made at a meeting
in late January, followed two
anonymous complaints about the
Channel 7 ads which ran in prime
time during much of 2011.
The panel said that the
advertisements breached several
sections of the Code, taking
exception to representations about
product benefits and the degree to
which these could be substantiated.
A detailed report included
evidence presented by Swisse
about its Women’s Ultivite product
which was claimed to show a “50%
improvement in PMS symptoms” -
with the Panel saying the same
study indicated that a non-active
placebo also improved the
symptoms by 28.6%.
The wide-ranging ruling ordered
Swisse not to claim that its Men’s
Ultivite product can have any
benefits related to memory
function or heart health, as well as
dismissed a Swisse claim that
Ultiboost Sleep can cause
consumers to have a good sleep
and wake up “fresh”.
Swisse is also not allowed to state
that Wild Krill Oil provides benefits
for joint and heart health in
ordinary healthy consumers; or
that its Ultiboost Glucosamine
contains an ingredient that is better
absorbed by the body than other
forms or provides a dosage that has
been clinically recommended.
And claims that the Women’s
Ultivite product can offer benefits
in relation to tiredness or stress
were also dismissed.
The panel has requested Swisse
Vitamins Pty Ltd to cease using the
advertisements, as well as
withdraw representations that any
of the products are “clinically
proven” or “independently tested”.
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