Wednesday, May 18, 2011

Store Brand Baby Formulas Win a Final Round in Court

This is a Sponsored post written by me on behalf of storebrandformula.com for SocialSpark. All opinions are 100% mine.

As a formula user, I was really interested in hearing this news.  When I was ready to wean my son and switch to formula, I scrutinized formulas to figure out which one would be the best for my son.  It seemed that there were some in particular that stated they were the best.  Not only did they say they were better, but they were also much more expensive.  People often say, "You get what you pay for" and "more expensive means higher quality".  According to the Food and Drug Administration, all store brand formulas have to have the same nutrients as national brand formulas.  Another fact that I learned is that you can save up to 50% by buying store brand formulas, which definitely adds up to a lot of money.

Several years ago, Enfamil sent out a mailing to approximately 1.5 million people stating that store brand formulas were "inferior" to their LIPIL brand.  This resulted in a $13.5 million lawsuit being filed against Enfamil maker Mead Johnson for false advertising.  PBM Products Inc., a unit of Perrigo's Co., which makes store brand formula, was able to successfully argue that store brand formulas provide the same level of nutrition as Enfamil brand formula. 

Mead Johnson had been involved in two prior lawsuits regarding this same issue.  “As the litigation history of the parties demonstrates, despite having twice been restrained from disseminating misleading advertising, Mead Johnson continued to do so,” Circuit Judge Andre Davis wrote. “PBM cannot fairly compete with Mead Johnson unless and until Mead Johnson stops infecting the marketplace with misleading advertising.”

 "The Court has made it clear that national brand and store brand suppliers are entitled to fairly compete and advertising abuses will not be tolerated," said Perrigo Chairman and CEO Joseph C. Papa in a statement. "We also appreciate the Court's recognition that PBM could lawfully compare its products to national brand products."

This court decision will now allow more opportunity for store brand formulas to compete with national brands.  This court decision will also bring about more awareness to parents about the nutritional value of store brand formulas.  Nervous parents can relax understanding that they are making an educated decision about their formula choice.  Brand name and more expensive are not always a must.

You can read more information about this lawsuit from Business Week.
Visit storebrandformula.com to read more about formula.
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