WASHINGTON—The Natural Products Foundation (NPF) recently met with officials from both FDA and FTC to turn over the names of 10 companies that have continued to make drug or disease claims in advertising and other promotional materials for dietary supplement products. The meetings were part of an ongoing effort through the foundation’s Truth in Advertising (TIA) program, which aims to first educate advertisers to help them bring their advertising into compliance.
“There is no excuse for companies to be making drug and disease claims given the many ways they can find out how to make their materials compliant,” said Marc Ullman, regulatory attorney and chair of the NPF Legal Advisory Council. “When we notify a company about non-compliant ads and they continue to make illegal claims, they need to know that isn’t the end of the matter—there are repercussions.”
Tracy Taylor, executive director of NPF, said the agencies were receptive to the group’s efforts. “The good news, which we reported during our meetings, is that out of the 21 companies that have received letters as part of the [TIA] program, several have already undertaken substantial efforts to bring their advertising into compliance—including taking down a Web site,” she said. “In addition to the TIA material we turned over to FDA and FTC, we have also provided those agencies with information concerning seven other Web sites making serious disease treatment claims—including H1N1 cures—as we believe that this type of claim requires an immediate regulatory response.”
Under the TIA program, a first of its kind self-regulatory program, the foundation embraces the basic principles that any advertisement or marketing materials must be truthful, not misleading, and substantiated under the requirements of both the Federal Food Drug and Cosmetic Act (FDCA) as amended by Dietary Supplement Health and Education Act (DSHEA) and the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) Act. The program, which is funded by industry companies, includes extensive educational information on the foundation’s Web site to assist companies in need of guidance.
