Children's meal product producer - Convicted for Neglecting to Promote, (Name) Hipp
The Regional Court of Appeals (OLG) in Munich has barred baby food manufacturer Hipp from utilizing misleading marketing strategies. The vzbv, or Federation of German Consumer Organisations, filed a complaint, which the court upheld, leaving no room for an appeal.
This family-run business had heralded its infant formula with the assertion, "Your child requires 7 times more Vitamin D than an adult." The fine print on the product packaging, however, only exposed this claim in relation to weight per kilogram. In digital advertisements, this clarification was concealed behind a button that required clicking.
The court declared that this level of clarification was not adequate. A precedent-setting decision by the German Federal Court of Justice maintains that the overall impact of marketing is crucial. The claim that a child needs seven times more vitamin D than an adult and that the advertised milk satisfies this alleged heightened requirement is unfounded.
The Regional Court of Appeals in Munich had endorsed the vzbv's complaint in 2020. The OLG initially rejected the appeal in an initial hearing in 2021, favoring Hipp. Nevertheless, the German Federal Court of Justice reversed the judgment and remanded the case back to the OLG, which has now revised its ruling and directed Hipp to halt and desist. Hipp's advertising violates the EU regulation that stipulates nutritional claims must not be false, ambiguous, or misleading.
Initially, Hipp ignored a request for comment. According to vzbv, the company has since corrected the contested sections on its website. The federation is now verifying whether the statement on the packaging has also been altered.
The decision made by the Regional Court of First Instance in Munich demanded that Hipp makes necessary alterations to their infant formula packaging. The contested claim about Vitamin D requirements was found to violate EU regulations, as it was deemed false, ambiguous, or misleading by the court.
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