At present, the market size of the solid beverage industry is gradually expanding, but advertising violations occur frequently and have become a key area for regulatory enforcement. For enterprises, a single illegal promotion not only may cause advertising expenses to go down the drain, but also affect their market layout. What "traps" should be guarded against in solid beverage advertisements? How to be compliant and effective? This article will provide a detailed introduction.

PART.1 Regulatory situation

Solid beverages belong to general food, whose advertising and promotion should comply with the provisions of the Advertising Law of the People’s Republic of China (hereinafter referred to as the Advertising Law), the Implementing Regulations of the Food Safety Law of the People’s Republic of China and other laws and regulations concerning the advertising and promotion of general food, to ensure that all promotions are run within the framework of laws and regulations.

PART.2 High-frequency "traps"

1. The promotion involves the functions of disease prevention and treatment, touching upon the medical attributes

For example, the advertisement content claims that the product has functions such as treating and preventing hypertension, heart disease and lowering blood sugar, and uses medical terms such as "traditional Chinese medicine" and "anti-inflammatory", as well as misleading terms such as "calming the mind", "causing internal heat" and "promoting blood circulation".

According to Article 17 of the Advertising Law, except for advertisements for medical treatment, drugs and medical devices, no other advertisements are allowed to involve disease treatment functions, and medical terms or terms that may cause the promoted commodity to be confused with drugs or medical devices.

2. Promoting health functions, beyond the positioning of general food

For example, directly claiming functions such as "assist in regulating intestinal flora", "improving sleep" and "enhancing immunity", using suggestive expressions such as "let healthy intestines stay" and "activate intestinal motility", using patterns of human organs to imply functions, setting specific groups such as "suitable for ××", etc.

According to Article 38 of the Implementing Regulations of the Food Safety Law of the People's Republic of China, foods other than health food cannot claim health functions.

3. Confusing product categories and misleading consumers' cognition

For example, using product name to confuse consumers with food for special medical purpose, infant and young children formula food, health food and other special foods.

According to Article 4 of the Advertising Law, advertisements should not contain false or misleading content and should not deceive or mislead consumers. Article 20 stipulates that it is prohibited to publish advertisements for infant dairy products, beverages and other foods claimed to fully or partially replace breast milk in mass media or public places.

According to the Announcement of the State Administration for Market Regulation on Strengthening the Quality and Safety Supervision of Solid Beverages, the product name of solid beverage shall not be the same as that of special food approved and released.

4. The use of absolute words violates the authenticity of advertisement

For example: Best, 100% absorption and King of Kings.

According to Article 9 of the Advertising Law, advertisements shall not use terms such as "national-level", "top-level" and "best".

PART.3 Conclusion

Compliance in advertising of solid beverages is not only a basic obligation for enterprises to comply with laws and regulations, but also a key to ensuring the healthy development of the industry. From recent regulatory practices, law enforcement authorities have continuously intensified efforts to investigate and punish advertising violations, so solid beverage enterprises need to strengthen compliance awareness and incorporate regulatory requirements throughout the entire process of advertising planning, production and delivery. Only by adhering to the bottom line of compliance can enterprises achieve long-term and stable development and promote the formation of a healthy competitive landscape in the industry.

Source: Antion

Note: This article is compiled by Antion. Please indicate the source for reprint.