New Zealand Sours on Splenda Ads

July 28, 2005

• Duke Study Not Sweet on Splenda • Lab Tests Point to Problems with New Sweetener • Artificial Sweeteners Linked to Weight Gain • FDA Should Reconsider Aspartame Cancer Risk, Say Experts • EU Scientists Uphold Safety of Aspartame • New Zealand Sours on Splenda Ads --- • Splenda Complaints

The controversy over Splenda doesn't stop at the U.S. seashore. The New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has upheld a complaint against Johnson & Johnson for misleading marketing practices in its Splenda advertising.

"Splenda is being compared directly to sugar and (is) misleading and confusing consumers into thinking it's as natural as sugar because it's 'made from sugar and tastes like sugar,'" according to the upheld complaint. Splenda is a chlorinated artificial sweetener.

The Authority's Advertising Standards Complaints Board, made up of representatives from New Zealand's advertising and marketing agencies, reviewed 15 second and 30 second versions of an ad for the artificial sweetener along with focus group input. The Board determined that the ad deceived consumers into thinking Splenda is all natural like sugar, when it is actually a chemical compound.

"The (Splenda) advertisement...gave rise to a likelihood of a consumer being confused and mislead as a result of the comparison in the advertisement," the Board decided. According to the ASA, when the Board upholds a complaint, they ask the company not to run the ad again.

In reality, the product Splenda does not contain and is not sugar. The artificial sweetener ingredient (sucralose) in Splenda is manufactured chemically. The sweetness of Splenda is due to the chlorocarbon chemical (sucralose) that contains three atoms of chlorine in every one of its molecules. In fact, the name sucralose is misleading because it is not a sugar but a chlorinated chemical.

In the United States, Johnson & Johnson is currently involved in more than ten federal and consumer class action lawsuits alleging misleading marketing for the chlorinated artificial sweetener Splenda.

"This is an important ruling for consumers. As more and more sweeteners are used to formulate foods in the U.S., consumers need to be vigilant in reading the ingredients part of the Food Label to verify if the product is made with all natural real sugar or some man-made, chemical sweetener. To help consumers, advertising of these food products must be accurate and not misleading," says Andy Briscoe, President of the Sugar Association.

The New Zealand Advertising Standards Authority was formed in 1973 and is a self-regulating body comprised of marketing and advertising agencies in New Zealand.

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