Dietary supplements are controversial. Unfair advertising offers are now increasingly becoming the focus of food monitoring.
Stuttgart (dpa / lsw) - Minister of Agriculture Peter Hauk (CDU) has warned against misleading statements about dietary supplements. Ahead of the presentation of the food monitoring report on Wednesday (11:00 a.m.) in Stuttgart, Hauk said: "I recommend consumers not to be misled by exaggerated claims of effectiveness on the Internet. Be careful with dubious statements on social media."
On the Internet, food, especially dietary supplements, are increasingly being advertised with health claims, he said. "However, there are clear rules in the EU for health-related advertising, which also apply to the internet and social media."
According to the ministry, checking advertising statements on social media such as Instagram is not easy. The chemical and veterinary investigation office in Stuttgart examined 68 influencers on Instagram for health-related statements.
According to this, only 44 health-related statements were identified in 565 so-called stories, of which around 90 percent were classified as not permissible, as Hauk reported. Food monitoring will monitor these advertising areas more closely in the future.
