[Federal Register Volume 62, Number 10 (Wednesday, January 15, 1997)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2161-2162]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 97-922]


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FEDERAL TRADE COMMISSION

[File No. 962-3069]


Abbott Laboratories; Analysis to Aid Public Comment

AGENCY: Federal Trade Commission.

ACTION: Proposed consent agreement.

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SUMMARY: In settlement of alleged violations of Federal law prohibiting 
unfair or deceptive acts or practices and unfair methods of 
competition, this consent agreement, accepted subject to final 
Commission approval, would prohibit, among other things, the Abbott 
Park, Illinois-based marketer of nutritional beverages from making any 
claim about the extent to which doctors or other professionals 
recommend any food or dietary or nutritional supplement, or about any 
other recommendation, approval, or endorsement of such products, unless 
it possesses competent and reliable scientific evidence to substantiate 
the claim. The agreement settles allegations that Abbott made false and 
unsubstantiated claims in an extensive national advertising campaign 
that promotes the company's Ensure nutritional beverages for healthy, 
active adults.

DATES: Comments must be received on or before March 17, 1997.

ADDRESSES: Comments should be directed to: FTC/Office of the Secretary, 
Room 159, 6th St. and Pa. Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20580.

FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT:
Michelle K. Rusk, Federal Trade Commission, S-466, 6th and Pennsylvania 
Ave., NW., Washington, DC 20580. (202) 326-3148. Joel Winston, Federal 
Trade Commission, S-4002, 6th and Pennsylvania Ave., NW., Washington, 
DC 20580. (202) 326-3153.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: Pursuant to Section 6(f) of the Federal 
Trade Commission Act, 38 Stat. 721, 15 U.S.C. 46, and Section 2.34 of 
the Commission's Rules of Practice (16 CFR 2.34) notice is hereby given 
that the above-captioned consent agreement containing a consent order 
to cease and desist, having been filed with and accepted, subject to 
final approval, by the Commission, has been placed on the public record 
for a period of sixty (60) days. The following Analysis to Aid Public 
Comment describes the terms of the consent agreement, and the 
allegations in the accompanying complaint. An electronic copy of the 
full text of the consent agreement package can be obtained from the 
Commission Actions section of the FTC Home Page (for January 2, 1997), 
on the World Wide Web, at ``http://www.ftc.gov/os/actions/htm.'' A 
paper copy can be obtained from the FTC Public Reference Room, Room H-
130, Sixth Street and Pennsylvania Avenue, NW., Washington, DC 20580, 
either in person or by calling (202) 326-3627. Public comment is 
invited. Such comments or views will be considered by the Commission 
and will be available for inspection and copying at its principal 
office in accordance with Section 4.9(b)(6)(ii) of the Commission's 
Rules of Practice (16 FR 4.9(b)(6)(ii)).

Analysis of Proposed Consent Order To Aid Public Comment

    The Federal Trade Commission has accepted an agreement to a 
proposed consent order from Abbott Laboratories. This matter concerns 
advertising for Ensure nutritional products.
    The proposed consent order has been placed on the public record for 
sixty (60) days for reception of comments by interested persons. 
Comments received during this period will become part of the public 
record. After sixty days, the Commission will again review the 
agreement and the comments received and will decide whether it should 
withdraw from the agreement or make final the agreement's proposed 
order.
    Ensure is a canned beverage which contains carbohydrates, protein, 
fat, vitamins and minerals and is formulated so that the very elderly 
and others who have difficulty obtaining sufficient nutrition from 
regular food can subsist on it, for example through tube feeding. The 
Ensure product line includes not only Ensure, but also Ensure High 
Protein, Ensure Plus, Ensure With Fiber, Ensure Pudding, and Ensure 
Light.
    According to the Commission's complaint, Abbott advertisements made 
the unsubstantiated representation that many doctors recommend Ensure 
as a meal supplement and replacement for healthy adults, including 
those in their thirties and forties. The complaint explains that, among 
other reasons, this claim is unsubstantiated because a survey of 
doctors relied upon by Abbott was not designed to elicit whether many 
doctors actually recommend Ensure as a meal supplement or replacement 
for healthy adults--as opposed to adults who are ill or elderly and may 
have nutritional deficiencies. According to the complaint, the survey 
merely asked doctors to assume that they would recommend a supplement 
for adults who were not ill, and then to select the brand they would 
most recommend.
    The complaint also alleges that Abbott misrepresented that one 
serving of Ensure provides vitamins in an amount comparable to typical 
multivitamin supplements. According to the complaint, while the typical 
multivitamin supplement provides at least 100% of the recommended daily 
intake (RDI) of vitamins, at the time the advertisements challenged in 
the complaint were first disseminated, one serving of Ensure provided 
62% of the RDI of Vitamin C and between 12% and 26% of the RDIs of the 
other vitamins for which RDIs have been established. The complaint 
states that, although Ensure has been reformulated, one serving still 
provides only 50% of the RDI of Vitamin C and 25% of the RDIs of the 
other vitamins.
    The proposed consent order contains provisions designed to remedy 
the violations charged and to prevent Abbott from engaging in similar 
acts and practices in the future.
    Part I of the order requires Abbott not to make any claim about the 
extent to which doctors or other professionals recommend any food or 
dietary or nutritional supplement for healthy adults, or about the 
recommendation, approval, or endorsement of such products by anyone, 
unless it possesses

[[Page 2162]]

competent and reliable evidence, which when appropriate must be 
competent and reliable scientific evidence, that substantiates the 
claim.
    Part II prohibits Abott from misrepresenting that one serving of 
any Ensure product, or any other product advertised, marketed or sold 
as a meal replacement or supplement for healthy adults, provides 
vitamins in an amount comparable to typical vitamin supplements. It 
also prohibits Abbott from misrepresenting the absolute or comparative 
amount of any vitamin or any other nutrient or ingredient provided by 
such products. Part II also requires that any representation covered by 
that Part that conveys a nutrient content claim defined for labeling by 
any regulation of the Food and Drug Administration (``FDA'') must 
comply with the qualifying amount set forth in that regulation.
    Part III provides that representations that would be specifically 
permitted in food labeling, under regulations issued by the FDA 
pursuant to the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act of 1990, are not 
prohibited by the order.
    The proposed order also requires Abbott to maintain materials 
relied upon to substantiate the claims covered by the order, to 
distribute copies of the order to certain current and future officers 
and employees, to notify the Commission of any changes in corporate 
structure that might affect compliance with the order, and to file one 
or more reports detailing compliance with the order. The order also 
contains a provision stating that it will terminate after twenty (20) 
years absent the filing in federal court, by either the United States 
or the FTC, of a complaint against Abbott alleging a violation of the 
order.
    The purpose of this analysis is to facilitate public comment on the 
proposed order, and it is not intended to constitute an official 
interpretation of the agreement and proposed order, or to modify any of 
their terms.
Donald S. Clark,
Secretary,
[FR Doc. 97-922 Filed 1-14-97; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 6750-01-M