Fake Forever Juice Highlights Labeling Regs

BALTIMOREFDAImports.com created Live Forever Juice," a fake brand to highlight FDA and USDA labeling requirements at the Natural Foods Expo in Baltimore, on Sept. 21 to  24. Live Forever Juice displayed a rainbow and unicorn branding scheme and claims that users could live forever" if they drank one bottle per day.  Text such as perfect for paranoid people" and drink 1 bottle of Live Forever Juice each day forever" was also displayed on the box.

Live Forever Juice is a brand that we created purely as a marketing ploy," said Benjamin England, founder and CEO of FDAImports.com. We wanted to make a connection with natural products food, dietary supplement and cosmetic manufacturers and distributors and generate interest in FDA and USDA labeling compliance, which is often one of the last things many companies focus on; much to their chagrin."

At the Natural Products Expo East, Live Forever Juice handed out mock retail-boxes and refer attendees to the website LiveForeverJuice.com, which features a collection of training videos that address labeling errors on the box, focusing on the nutrition facts panel, percent-juice declarations, ingredient lists and label claims.

The Live Forever Juice project is a way to have some fun, but also to communicate just how complex and maze-like FDA regulations really are," said England, a 17-year FDA veteran. Beyond the technical labeling requirements, the label is a window into all the regulatory obligations for a food, dietary supplement or cosmetic product. Failing to satisfy all the regulatory requirements can have serious legal repercussions."