The issue
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) stated that Cheerios cereal may not be as healthy as the cereal’s package claims.
According to the agency, maintaining that the cereal can lower cholesterol levels by 4 percent in six weeks is untrue and amounts to marketing the product as a drug. This, according to the agency, is violation of the federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act.
The FDA sent a warning letter to General Mills stating that it was "your responsibility to ensure that all of your products are in compliance with the Act and its implementing regulations". And that if the company failed to "promptly correct the violations" then the government may have to take "enforcement action without further notice".
The FDA has asked the company to revise the labels on the boxes and make the necessary changes by May 15, or face court injunctions.
The agency permits some health benefits of foods to be advertised, but it wants to make sure the manufacturers walk that line and not cross the limits.
Stephen Sundlof, director of the FDA’s Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition, admitted that the agency had no problems with the safety of Cheerios. “We just believe that the labeling on this particular product has gone beyond what the science supports,” Sundlof said.
The agency is particularly miffed that there is no reference to fruits, vegetables, and fiber content on the boxes. “Therefore, your claim does not convey that all these factors together help to reduce the risk of heart disease and does not enable the public to understand the significance of the claim in the context of the total daily diet,” stated the agency.
General Mills’ defence
In its defence, General Mills said that the Cheerios’ claims have been approved for 12 years, and the dispute is over language on the box, not science.
The spokesman of the company, Tom Forsythe, stated "The scientific body of evidence supporting the heart health claim was the basis for FDA's approval of the heart health claim, and the clinical study supporting Cheerios' cholesterol-lowering benefits is very strong."
About Cheerios
Cheerios was introduced in 1941 as the world’s first ready-to-eat oat cereal. The honey-nut variety came out in 1979, followed by apple cinnamon, multigrain and frosted flavors.
The company is the second-largest cereal maker, after Kellogg Co., of Battle Creek, Michigan.
advertising brainwash
When something like this happens it makes me realize how vulnerable we are to advertising. It seems like the general population knows enough about cholesterol and their health that a cereal should not have this kind of influence. It can be as simple as reading a couple of health stories and watching what you eat... though I guess Cheerios are misleading us all of a sudden.
Cheerios
The FDA needs to stop wasting everyones time and money with these types of rediculous letters. They should be working on more important things like plastic bottles and the toxin that everyone is drinking. For example Bisphenol A, According to the Environment California Research & Policy Center, which reviewed 130 studies on the topic, BPA has been linked to breast and uterine cancer, an increased risk of miscarriage, and decreased testosterone levels. BPA can also wreak havoc on children’s developing systems. (Parents beware: Most baby bottles and sippy cups are made with plastics containing BPA.) Everyone knows that eating Cheerios in the morning isn't going to stop you from having a heart attack. Damn Government agency spending our money again!
I love Cheerios! I don't buy
I love Cheerios! I don't buy them because they claim to do anything other than be a value, and taste good, although I do beleive they are good for my health. All you need to do to promote them, is to put on the box, "taste good, and good for you", and then paste the smiling Bee on the box. I like the Bee.
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