FTC Suing Garvey for Promoting Dietary Supplements' False Claims

WASHINGTON--Former baseball MVP Steve Garvey is being sued by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for playing an "active role" in developing deceptive claims in order to sell dietary supplements. The supplements in question, called the Enforma System and sold by Enforma Natural Products, are composed of a two-part weight loss system containing ingredients such as chitosan, ginkgo biloba, pyruvate and chromium picolinate. The company's 30-minute infomercial claimed that Enforma system users could lose weight without dieting or exercising, regardless of what they ate.

In a complaint filed Aug. 31, FTC claimed that Garvey, a former first baseman for the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres, allegedly supported the supplements--though their efficacy was unsubstantiated--by appearing in the company's infomercial, on its Web site and in various TV and radio spots.

According to FTC, Garvey made numerous statements in Enforma infomercials such as, "Look at all these delicious, supposedly forbidden foods: barbecued chicken and ribs, buttered biscuits. Foods you can eat when you crave them without guilt, without worry, and it's all because of a few little capsules."

Joel Winston, FTC's assistant director for advertising practices, said that Garvey needed to have a basis for endorsing the supplements in order to personally vouch for them.

"He made a number of claims that purported to be his own opinions and his own conclusions," Winston explained. "In effect, he was asking consumers watching the show to believe what he was saying and buy the product based on his credibility."

FTC's lawsuit also names Garvey's management company, a nutritionist appearing on the program [who has since settled with FTC and agreed to stop endorsing the products], the infomercial's producer and the infomercial's two principals. FTC is currently seeking an order to permanently prohibit Garvey and the other defendants from further engaging in deceptive practices; it would also require them to pay redress to Enforma System consumers.

In the past, FTC has sued other celebrity endorsers for making allegedly fraudulent claims, including actors Lloyd Bridges and George Hamilton. At press time, Garvey's management company could not be reached for comment.

This lawsuit, however, begs the question: will celebrity endorsers be more wary of endorsing dietary supplements? Not all all, if they do their homework, noted Sheldon Baker of Baker-Dillon Public Relations. "If a celebrity is going to endorse a product, they have to have tried the product and read as much as possible about it," he said. He added that the best endorsers have had their family and friends try a product before they endorse it.

According to Garvey, this particular suit sets a precedent by holding the host financially responsible [at least in part] for the product being endorsed. "It was my understanding that everything stated in the infomercial was in strict compliance with the law," he said, "and I had every reason to believe that Enforma's legal representatives had performed due diligence by reading materials discussing the research on the ingredients in the Enforma system."

Garvey added that he and his family had used the product successfully, and added, "I have always been an advocate of exercise and responsible nutrition, and never suggested that people should not exercise or eat responsibly."

This lawsuit comes on the heels of a complaint filed in April by FTC against Enforma. [That story can be also found at www.naturalproductsinsider.com.] For additional information about the Garvey suit, visit www.ftc.gov/opa/2000/09/garveyrelease.htm.