Article
Jury Gets Splenda Ad Case
Posted May 11, 2007, 06:22 am CST
By Debra Cassens Weiss
Splenda’s slogan that it’s “made from sugar so it tastes like sugar" is the subject of a civil suit that goes to a jury today.
Equal argues that consumers are confused by the slogan and it amounts to false advertising, according to the Legal Intelligencer. Splenda claims it’s true because a sugar molecule is used to make the sweetener before it is burned off.
Equal’s maker, Merisant Co., says McNeil Nutritionals omitted the phrase “does not contain sugar” on Splenda packaging to increase its business, according to Associated Press.
Hours before closing arguments began in a Philadelphia federal courtroom yesterday, a French court issued a ruling that a similar slogan violated French consumer protection laws.