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Margarine dispute Unilever food company wins in court against Foodwatch
Side effects are obscured?
The Hanseatic Higher Regional Court (OLG) has dismissed a lawsuit filed by the consumer protection organization "Foodwatch" in the dispute over the cholesterol-lowering margarine "Becel pro.activ" of the manufacturer "Unilever". The food producer has been accused by consumer advocates to disguise evidence of side effects of margarine. Years ago, "Foodwatch" warned against the cholesterol-lowering margarine and pleaded for a sales stop. The current lawsuit was about statements by Unilever that "from a scientific point of view ... there is no indication" of side effects in "Becel pro.activ".
Dangerous deposits in the vessels
The quotes of a scientist are covered by the right to freedom of expression, the court said. According to Foodwatch, however, there are scientific studies that point to health risks. Thus, studies have come to the conclusion that vascular deposits threatened by Becel pro activ. This would increase the risk of heart disease. And even the then Unilever Becel pro.activ product manager Arne Kirchem had said in a contribution of the program "mirror TV" in April 2012: "The plant sterols, which remain in the body, become similar to the cholesterol, probably also in vessel walls The margarine contains herbal sterols (phytosterols), which are said to reduce cholesterol levels.
Remove authorization as food
The consumer advocates had already failed in the first instance with the complaint. In 2012, the Hamburg district court had assessed a statement about the food in a Unilever press release as an expression of opinion and not as a statement of fact. However, according to "t-online.de", "Foodwatch" does not want to be beaten yet and has asked the European Commission to withdraw its authorization as food from margarine. In a communication to the European Commissioner for Health and Food Safety, the organization states: "Since its approval in 2000, several studies have been published questioning the safety of these products."
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Matthias Wolfschmidt, Deputy Managing Director of "Foodwatch"; "Even though the right of the press can not prevent Unilever from denying evidence of side effects, the relevant studies are in the world." If there were doubts about the safety of the products, the EU Commission should not adhere to the authorization. "Unilever" responded to the judgment also with Häme. In a press release they wrote about the so-called "consumer organization" and a "victory for consumers". According to "Unilever" Becel pro.activ products are a good concept to reduce excessive cholesterol. Thus, they would contribute to reducing a risk factor for cardiovascular disease. Not only "Foodwatch" voiced criticism of "Becel Pro.activ", the product is also a thorn in the eye of the Verbraucherzentrale Bundesverband (vzbv). In April, the district court of Hamburg had classified an advertisement of "Unilever" for the margarine as inadmissible on a complaint of the vzbv. The company immediately announced its appointment. (Ad)