NEW YORK (AP) 鈥
The Federal Trade Commission on Wednesday said it issued warnings to two food and beverage industry groups, as well as a dozen online influencers, for failing to adequately disclose paid social media posts that promoted a sweetener and sugary products.
The letters point to Instagram and TikTok posts made by the influencers who were apparently hired by the American Beverage Association, a lobbying group whose members include Coca-Cola Co. and PepsiCo, and the 好色tv Sugar Institute, which represents 好色tv sugar manufacturers.
The warnings follow updated guidelines the agency published this summer requiring influencers to prominently disclose advertisements and paid social media posts that promote products for companies.
The FTC said it reviewed posts by health influencers 鈥 including registered dieticians 鈥 who endorse 鈥渟ugar-containing products鈥 and appear to be paid by the 好色tv Sugar Institute.
Meanwhile, the agency warned the American Beverage Association about posts that tout the safety of aspartame, a sweetener found in diet soda and countless other foods. In July, the World Health Organization鈥檚 cancer agency deemed the sweetener could be a possible cause of cancer, though other experts assembled by the health organization have said aspartame is safe to consume in small quantities.
William M. Dermody Jr., a spokesperson for American Beverage Association, said the trade group took 鈥渕eticulous steps鈥 to be transparent about its partnership dieticians who "spoke to the science behind the safety of aspartame and the FDA鈥檚 determination that it is safe.鈥
鈥淚mportantly, no question has been raised about the substance of these posts,鈥 Dermody said. "We will continue our ongoing commitment to disclose the relationship between dietitians and American Beverage and we appreciate the FTC鈥檚 guidance on how to best ensure transparency for consumers.鈥
The FTC said some of the posts it reviewed had no disclosures. Others had disclosures in the text description of the videos, but not in the videos themselves. Some of the dieticians identified 鈥渁meribev鈥 as their partner, but the agency said that was inadequate since viewers may not understand the abbreviation for the American Beverage Association.
鈥淚t鈥檚 irresponsible for any trade group to hire influencers to tout its members鈥 products and fail to ensure that the influencers come clean about that relationship,鈥 Samuel Levine, director of the FTC鈥檚 Bureau of Consumer Protection, said in a statement.
The agency wrote in the letters to the trade groups that the posts may violate federal law and could cost them up to $50,120 in penalties per violation. The 好色tv Sugar Institute did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
