Setting the POM Precedent
This past Friday, a Federal court ruled in favor of POM Wonderful in its lawsuit against Purely Juice for deceiving customers by selling adulterated pomegranate juice and false advertising. Purely Juice was found guilty of marketing and labeling its product as 100% pomegranate juice, when in fact seven independent labs verified that Purely Juice’s 100% pomegranate juice was “not pure pomegranate juice” but rather consisted primarily of cane sugar and corn sweetener, and contained little pomegranate juice. The Court also found that Purely Juice knew they were selling adulterated pomegranate juice, but did not make any effort to recall their product.
This ruling is a victory for all consumers who drink pomegranate juice. Our research indicates that most pomegranate juice consumers drink it for the health benefits. This is because the body of medical research on “Wonderful” variety pomegranates is truly impressive. Over the past ten years, the world’s top scientists have demonstrated repeatedly that “Wonderful” variety pomegranates are one of nature’s healthiest fruits and vegetables. Their research gives great hope to people concerned about conditions like cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and prostate cancer, among others.
POM Wonderful alone has funded over $25 million in pomegranate research at the world’s leading universities. The results of this research include ten published human clinical studies plus a rich body of pre-clinical science. In addition, dozens of other academic researchers working independently of POM Wonderful have published positive findings on the health benefits of pomegranates.
Over the past two years, independent labs have tested nearly every product in the market and found overwhelming evidence of adulteration among many claiming to offer 100% pomegranate juice. We then notified the manufacturers of the adulterated products and asked them to fix the problem. In the case of Purely Juice, they continued selling adulterated product labeled as “100% pomegranate juice.” At that point, our chosen course of action was to sue them in order to stop their active deception to consumers. We welcome fair competition in the pomegranate juice business, but cheating is simply unacceptable especially when consumer health is at stake.
This important ruling sends a strong message to companies selling low-priced / low-quality pomegranate juice with claims of powerful health benefits. All pomegranate juice producers need to verify the authenticity of pomegranate juice imported from foreign countries. Further, they must ensure that their labels communicate clearly the origin and actual ingredients of their products. With the high cost of making pomegranate juice and strong demand for the product, many juice suppliers, particularly those exporting from foreign countries, stack the odds in their favor by adding sugar, colorants, and cheap filler juices to what they market as “100% pomegranate juice”. Unfortunately, this is not a problem unique to pomegranate juice; adulteration of orange, apple, and cranberry juice has occurred for decades as unscrupulous suppliers attempt to add to their economic bottom line by cheating consumers of real ingredients.
As health conscious and “in the know” consumers, we are likely to base our purchasing decisions upon precisely the kinds of false statements contained in Purely Juice’s marketing, particularly “100% pomegranate juice” and “no sugar added.” This should remind all of us to check product labels, scrutinize juice content, and demand to know the origin of the products we purchase. In the case of pomegranate juice, only 100% genuine and pure pomegranate juice from “Wonderful” variety fruit can guarantee powerful health benefits.
It is the solid science behind the health benefits of “Wonderful” variety pomegranates that makes all of us at POM Wonderful so passionate about what we do. We are proud of our products and the good health they bring to our consumers.
To read more information about the court ruling please go here, to the Original POM Press Release.
