CCPA fines Storia, English Oven Rs 1 lakh each for misleading '100 pc' claims
New Delhi, June 21
The Central Consumer Protection Authority has imposed penalties of Rs 1 lakh each on Storia Foods and Beverages Pvt Ltd and Mrs. Bectors Food Specialities Limited for misleading advertisements and unfair trade practices related to the use of '100 per cent' claims on food products, according to an official statement released on Sunday.
The consumer watchdog has directed both companies to immediately discontinue the disputed claims from their product packaging, websites and digital platforms, the Ministry of Consumer Affairs, Food & Public Distribution said.
The action was taken under the Consumer Protection Act, 2019, and the Guidelines for Prevention of Misleading Advertisements and Endorsements for Misleading Advertisements, 2022.
In a statement, the government said the expression '100 per cent' is a precise and absolute numerical claim that cannot be used loosely, approximately or merely as a marketing slogan.
According to the authority, any such claim must accurately reflect the actual composition of a product and should be interpreted in its plain and literal sense by an ordinary consumer.
The CCPA took suo motu cognisance of advertisements by Storia Foods relating to products marketed as '100 per cent Tender Coconut Water' and '100 per cent Juice' variants, including pomegranate, mixed fruit, mango and guava chilli flavours.
The products were advertised through the company's website, product packaging and leading e-commerce platforms.
The watchdog found that Storia's '100 per cent Tender Coconut Water' was prepared using coconut water concentrate reconstituted with water, while the product label also disclosed the presence of preservative INS 202.
The authority held that an ordinary consumer would reasonably understand the claim to mean the product consisted entirely of natural tender coconut water.
Similarly, the CCPA observed that several juice products marketed as '100 per cent Juice' contained water, fruit concentrates and other ingredients, making the claims misleading regarding the products' actual composition.
In a separate case, the authority examined English Oven advertisements carrying claims such as '100 per cent Atta Bread' and '100 per cent Whole Wheat Bread' across print, digital and social media platforms.
During the proceedings, the company admitted that the products contained 87 per cent whole wheat flour.
The CCPA held that a product containing 87 per cent whole wheat flour could not be advertised as '100 per cent Atta' or '100 per cent Whole Wheat'.
In addition, the authority noted that the simultaneous use of claims such as '100 per cent Whole Wheat Bread' and 'Zero Maida' created a misleading impression that the bread consisted entirely of whole wheat flour and contained no other ingredients.
Rejecting the company's defence that the claim merely referred to wheat being the sole grain source, the CCPA said advertisements must be assessed from the perspective of a reasonable consumer and that post-facto technical explanations cannot override the impression created by marketing claims.
The government reiterated that all claims relating to composition, quality, nutrition or health benefits must be truthful, verifiable and non-deceptive, adding that it will continue to take strict action against misleading advertisements that compromise consumers' right to informed choice.
— IANS
Reader Comments
As a nutrition-conscious person, this is music to my ears! '100% Atta Bread' with only 87% whole wheat flour? That's cleverly deceptive. English Oven and others have been using these '100%' and 'Zero Maida' claims to charge premium prices. The CCPA's point about post-facto technical explanations not overriding first impressions is spot on. We need more such actions against all the 'natural' and 'pure' claims flooding our market.
Honest question: why is the fine only Rs 1 lakh each when they've been misleading customers for months or even years? That's nothing compared to their profits. But I appreciate the government finally cracking down. As a consumer, I've been burned by these '100% juice' claims before - buying what I thought was pure juice only to realize it's mostly water and concentrate. 🤦♀️ We need more awareness and stricter penalties!
In US we call this 'truth in advertising' enforcement. It's good to see India taking similar steps under the Consumer Protection Act 2019. But Rs 1 lakh seems ridiculously low for companies that probably earn crores. The penalty needs to be proportional to revenue to be a real deterrent. Still, small victories matter - at least now brands will think twice before throwing '100%' around like a meaningless marketing gimmick.
Respectfully, this is a good move but we need to look beyond just fines. The bigger issue is that companies know most Indian consumers don't read labels carefully or understand technical terms like 'reconstituted concentrate.' Half the packaging on Storia's products is in English anyway. Maybe we also need mandatory Hindi/regional language disclosures for key claims? 🙏 Glad someone is watching out for our rights though!
We welcome thoughtful discussions from our readers. Please keep comments respectful and on-topic.