Netherlands: Chewing Gum Argument: Natural Gum Or Not?

Green, greener, greenest! Consumers are increasingly making (more) conscious choices for more sustainable, natural products. The food industry is embracing this need. Chewing gum producer BenBits also advertises with "natural" and "plastic-free" gum. This year, competitors Perfetti (Mentos and others) and BenBits submitted complaints about each other's advertising.

Perfetti goes as far as the Board of Appeal (BoA) of the Advertising Code Committee (ACC) with complaints about the following texts from BenBits: 'Bits of nature', 'plastic free', 'natural gum base', 'naturally biodegradable'. According to Perfetti, BenBits presents its product as more sustainable/natural than it really is. For example, BenBits' final product is said to consist of 5% synthetic gum, making 'natural gum' and 'plastic free' misleading regarding the environmental benefits and composition of the gum. BenBits fails to substantiate that the last 5% of the product is also natural. Therefore, the BoA concludes that this is misleading.

In another case, BenBits asks the ACC to rule on the designations 'gum' and 'gum base' on the packaging of Mentos. The ACC rejects BenBits' complaint. According to the ACC, no misleading impression is created that it concerns natural gum.

With its won cases in hand, Perfetti is asking the Amsterdam District Court's preliminary relief judge to judge that BenBits needs to stop using the designations "natural" and "plastic-free. Both parties refer to research into the composition of the gum base of BenBits' chewing gum. Perfetti's series of victories comes to an end, as the preliminary relief judge finds that there is something to be said for both studies. An opinion of a (third) expert could offer a solution, but there is no room for this in preliminary injunction proceedings. The judge dismisses the claims. Clearly, winning at the ACC and the BoA does not guarantee success in court.

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