The consumer regulatory agency of Sao Paulo, Brazil, has reportedly fined McDonald’s US $1.6 million for allegedly marketing to children. Procon SP has claimed that franchisee Arcos Dorados Holdings Inc. violated the state’s consumer code by using children’s characters and toys to promote Happy Meals®. “This is not an isolated case,” a Procon SP lawyer was quoting as saying. “There’s no need to appeal as they do to children without the maturity or the rationality to enter the market as consumers.” In 2011, the Brazilian Consumer Defense Foundation fined the fast-food corporation US$1.8 million after a nonprofit organization complained that Happy Meal® incentives encouraged “unhealthy eating habits” among children. A McDonald’s spokesperson has since told media sources that the company plans to appeal the latest ruling. Additional details about the Consumer Defense Foundation matter appear in Issue 420 of this Update. See Law360 and Reuters, April 23, 2013.
Category Archives Global
Peru has passed a law that prohibits genetically modified organisms (GMOs) from being imported, produced or used anywhere within the country for the next 10 years. The law, which was approved by President Ollanta Humala last year and took effect last week, is aimed at preserving Peru’s agricultural diversity, preventing cross-pollination and supporting local farmers. According to news sources, GMOs threaten the country’s heritage plant species, including several varieties of colorful corn, which are becoming increasingly popular export commodities. Violating the law will result in a maximum fine of 10,000 UIT tax units, which is about 36.5 million soles ($14 million). The goods can also be seized and destroyed. See Andean Air Mail & Peruvian Times, November 17, 2012.
A Mexican lawmaker has proposed a 50 percent tax on chewing gum. According to news sources, Institutional Revolutionary Party Deputy Juan Manuel Diez Francos claims such a tax could fund efforts to clean up the gum discarded in various public venues. Mexico is apparently the second largest consumer of gum behind the United States—citizens chew an average of 2.5 pieces daily. A similar proposal is currently being sought in Northern Ireland for the same reasons. See VOXXI, November 28, 2012.
Safe Work Australia, a government agency lacking regulatory authority, has recommended that multi-walled and single-walled carbon nanotubes be classified as hazardous unless they can be shown, on a case-by-case basis with toxicological or other data, to merit a different classification. The agency recently released a report titled “Human Health Hazard Assessment and Classification of Carbon Nanotubes,” which concludes that the recommended classification is supported by the available evidence. Specifically, Safe Work Australia, seeks the classification “Harmful: Danger of serious damage to health by prolonged exposure through inhalation.”
Chilean Senator Guido Girardi has reportedly filed a formal complaint with the country’s Ministry of Health, alleging that fast-food companies have violated a new ban on using toys and other giveaways to market children’s meals. According to media sources, the complaint claims that several fast-food restaurants have flouted the law, along with other food manufacturers that purportedly use crayons, stickers and similar incentives to market products which appeal to children. Girardi has asked the Ministry of Health to enforce sanctions if the companies named in the complaint do not begin complying with the toy ban. “These businesses know that this food damages the health of children and they know that the law is in effect. They’re using fraudulent and abusive means,” said Girardi, who apparently drafted the law. “These corporations threatened that if the law was approved there would be no more money for children’s foundations, the sick, or athletes, but…
After two years of deliberation, the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) has reportedly agreed to issue draft regulations that would require energy drink manufacturers to rebrand their products as “caffeinated beverages.” Based on the findings of an expert panel convened to study caffeine and energy drink consumption in India, the draft regulations would apparently set an upper caffeine limit of 320 milligrams per liter or 320 parts per million (ppm) in caffeinated beverages, as well as prohibit any nutritive claims and the use of the word “energy” as a descriptor. FSSAI has also proposed that all energy drinks bear safety labels warning that such products (i) are “not recommended for children, pregnant or lactating women, persons sensitive to caffeine and sportspersons,” (ii) should not be consumed in excess of two cans per day, and (iii) contain a “high caffeine content.” “We had been considering the standards for…
According to news sources, Philippine Department of Justice Secretary Leila de Lima issued an opinion in May 2012, upholding a Department of Health (DOH) memorandum that prohibited multinational companies that make infant milk and other nutritional products from using registered trademarks that contain health and nutrition claims which may undermine breastfeeding and breast milk. The companies were not prohibited from selling or advertising their products as long as their marketing materials, including product labels, comply with DOH rules. DOH apparently took the action on the basis of data showing that the country has a weak breastfeeding culture. In issuing her ruling, de Lima rejected the companies’ contention that preventing a trademark owner from the right to use its own registered mark on its products constituted a deprivation of property without due process of law. She reportedly said, “deceptive marks and misdescriptive marks are absolutely unregistrable.” See Business Mirror, June 13,…
The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has fined a Kensington, South Australia, olive oil manufacturer a total of A$13,200 for marketing its products as “extra virgin” even though they purportedly did not meet international grade standards. According to a May 18, 2012, ACCC press release, The Big Olive Company Pty Ltd over a four-month period “supplied nearly three thousand 500ml bottles of ‘Oz Olio’ oil with a representation of extra virgin olive oil on the front label.” The commission has since alleged that some of these oils contained “more free fatty acids than permitted by olive oil trade standards,” indicating that the “olives used to make the oil were old, damaged or otherwise of poor quality and the oil was not extra virgin olive oil at the time of bottling.” ACCC apparently decided to test four imported oils and three domestic labels after receiving complaints from the Australian Olive…
The Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (MFDA) has reportedly seized more than 1 million cans of Red Bull®, an energy drink containing 250-300 parts per million (ppm) of caffeine, on the ground that the product exceeds the 145 ppm limit for carbonated beverages. according to a press report, no separate standards for caffeine in energy drinks exist, but the Food Safety and Standard Act 2006 states that all drinks containing caffeine should follow the carbonated beverage rules. The nation’s Food Safety and Standards Authority is developing a new energy drink category that could allow higher caffeine content. The action is apparently the second in India; Tamil Nadu has also evidently targeted the beverage for exceeding caffeine limits. MFDA Commissioner Mahesh Zagade reportedly said, “Caffeine is addictive and it has a long-term impact. Youngsters today are increasingly consuming alcohol with Red Bull. Parents should be keeping a check on what their…
The Bahamas Ministry of Agriculture and Marine Resources has reportedly announced its decision to prohibit all commercial shark fishing in its waters, citing a shark tourism industry that generates $80 million in revenue each year. According to media reports, the ban would encompass 240,000 square miles and protect approximately 40 shark species present in the area. The new protections were purportedly needed after a seafood export firm last year proposed fishing the Bahamas for shark fins, a plan that quickly met resistance from the Bahamas National Trust and the Pew Environment Group. “The Bahamas government is determined to enhance the protection extended to sharks,” stated Agriculture and Marine Resources Minister Lawrence Cartwright. “As we are all aware, sharks are heavily fished in many corners of the world’s oceans.” See The Washington Post, July 5, 2011.
