Simpson Grierson's Sales & Marketing Law Group provides practical advice on all legal issues surrounding the delivery of goods and services to the marketplace. The Group answers questions for NZ Marketing Magazine on a bi-monthly basis and this column is republished on our website and sent to relevant clients.
Do Your Food Labels Accurately Reflect The Product Itself? Jun 2008 Consumers are becoming increasingly concerned about the contents of the food they eat. Food manufacturers must ensure the packaging and labelling gives consumers sufficient information to make informed decisions. In April 2008, the Federal Court of Australia declared a number of Arnott's biscuits' packaging to be misleading. In light of this recent decision, we review the importance of the overall impression that food packaging creates on the consumer.
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Waste, Reduce, Recycle: Waste Minimisation Bill May 2008 Most products will create waste, either from the packaging or the product itself. The Local Government and Environmental Select Committee has recently recommended that the Waste Minimisation Bill be passed, but with significant amendments to the original draft.
The Bill aims to reduce the amount of waste sent to landfills, introduce a levy on waste and foster the development of product stewarding schemes.
This article will briefly outline relevant provisions and discuss how they may affect industry, in particular businesses that sell disposable products or provide packaged goods to New Zealand.
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Public Health Bill Mar 2008 The Public Health Bill is a major legislative reform which reviews and updates the Health Act 1956. The public submissions period closed on 7 March.
The purpose of the Bill is to improve, promote, and protect public health in order to help attain optimal and equitable health outcomes for Maori and all other population groups (clause 3). There is nothing controversial about that. But what is controversial is the attempt to manage by legislation the risks of non-communicable diseases such as cancer, diabetes and cardiovascular disease. There are two main provisions in the Bill which relate to non-communicable diseases.
These are Part 3 and clauses 374(r) and (x). In this FYI, we briefly outline these provisions and discuss how and why they are causing concerns to the food industry.
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Comparative Advertising Feb 2007 A recent decision of a panel of the Advertising Standards Complaints Board provides useful guidance on the proper use of comparative advertising and how promotional claims should be made.
Comparative advertising is a powerful marketing tool. So not surprisingly, it attracts the scrutiny of competitors like no other form of marketing. For this reason it is imperative for comparative advertising to be clear and, above all else, accurate.
The Advertising Standards Complaints Board provides useful guidance on the proper use of comparative advertising and how promotional claims should be made.
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The Long Arm of Fair Trading Law In a decision that could have wide implications for overseas companies marketing their products to New Zealanders, the High Court in Auckland has recently granted an injunction against a group of New Zealand and Australian telemarketing companies and their Australian director. This is the first time the Fair Trading Act 1986 has been enforced against people living outside of New Zealand that have engaged in misleading conduct here.
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When eggs don't belong in the same basket Oct 2007 Organic food is becoming increasingly popular. However, as a number of Australian and
New Zealand examples illustrate, before you jump on the organic bandwagon and
market your product as such, care must be taken to ensure it is actually organic.
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Sound familiar? Beauty advertising these days often relies on claims of innovation and breakthrough technologies. But as three members of the beauty industry recently found out, if you are going to make claims about the wonders of your product, you need to be able to back them up.
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'Can the Spam!': Preparing for the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act Aug 2007 On 5 September 2007 the Unsolicited Electronic Messages Act (Act) will come into force. This Act regulates the sending of commercial electronic messages and represents New Zealand's contribution to the global movement to prevent spam. The Act imposes various requirements on the senders of commercial electronic messages that are likely to impact on many organisations, particularly those engaged in direct marketing..
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Ribena - how David brought down Goliath Jul 2007 Against all odds, two Auckland schoolgirls have revealed the truth behind health claims made by GlaxoSmithKline (GSK), a multinational pharmaceutical company with an annual global turnover of approximately $61 billion in 2005. In March 2007, GSK pleaded guilty to charges of false and misleading advertising for their blackcurrant drink, Ribena. GSK was fined $227,500 and ordered to spend $96,000 on corrective advertising. In light of the sentencing decision released in late May, we review how David brought down Goliath.
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Celebrity Endorsements Jun 2007 In August 2006, the Federal Court of Australia found that Ian Turpie, former host of the New Price is Right and famous for the catch phrase "come on down", has no problems getting it up in the bedroom..
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Reading the fine print is sometimes not enough Apr 2007 Some recent New Zealand and United Kingdom decisions about telecommunications advertisements highlight the fact that telling the audience to read the fine print is sometimes not enough.
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Scare Tactics Mar 2007 Playing on people's fears is a commonly used tool in advertising. Recently the
Advertising Standards Complaints Board were required to consider how far an
advertiser can go in playing on our fears.
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'Baby, You can Drive My Car' Dec 2006 For advertisers who want to push the boundaries, using hyperbole can be a safe option. But recent decisions have called into question what amounts to hyperbole.
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New Bills take on Minimum Wage and Alcohol Advertising Sep 2006 This Bill is of interest because, if it becomes law, all independent contractors must be paid the minimum wage. The Bill has already passed its first hurdle in Parliament and is now to go before a Select Committee. This Bill poses a significant risk to businesses who frequently use independent contractors, and is seen by those in the Direct Selling industry as "life threatening". We discuss the Bill in further detail below and note that the closing date for submissions is 12 October 2006.
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Weighty Fine for Weight Loss Company Not to be Taken Lightly Jul 2006 In what the Commerce Commission have described as "the largest prosecution of its kind in New Zealand", the company behind Body Enhancer has been sentenced to $632,500 in fines, $130,000 in costs, and ordered to undertake a nationwide campaign of corrective advertising that is likely to cost $30,000.
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Click here to request a copy. Please include your name, position, company, and email address to be sent a copy of this update.
Changes to Advertising Codes Apr 2006 A new advertising Code, released by the Advertising Standards Authority's (ASA) on Thursday 6 April 2006, requires advertisers to take special care when advertising to children, to uphold the role of parents in educating their children, and not to mislead about the nutritional value of any food.
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Sales & Marketing Q&A - March 2006 Mar 2006 1. Relying on Overseas Test Results 2. Asterisks and Fine Print 3. Country Of Origin Food Labelling 4. Draft Food Standard Notification
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Click here to request a copy. Please include your name, position, company, and email address to be sent a copy of this update
FYI Sales & Marketing: Historical Columns Jun 2005 Simpson Grierson's Sales & Marketing Law Group has been a regular contributor to "NZ Marketing Magazine" since 1994, writing on marketing law in New Zealand. > Read More
