The Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) has issued a formal ruling against Innate-Essence Ltd, the parent company of The Turmeric Co. The regulatory body found that the brand's website included customer testimonials that implied their supplement products could prevent, treat, or cure diseases. This action violated established advertising codes regarding health claims for food and supplement products.
The content in question featured testimonials where specific health conditions were obscured by blurring effects. Despite these redactions, the surrounding text referenced recoveries from illness, the elimination of medication, and symptom reduction. The ASA concluded that these clues effectively invited consumers to deduce the omitted medical conditions, which still crossed the line into prohibited medical marketing.
In response, the brand utilized a workaround approach by stating that the text was blurry due to regulatory constraints while simultaneously pointing users toward external Trustpilot reviews. The ASA rejected this attempt to bypass regulations, noting that the overall impression remained non-compliant with the CAP Code. The company has since removed the advertisements in question and is adjusting its internal review processes.
Founder Thomas Hal Robson-Kanu confirmed the company is working with the ASA to ensure future marketing materials meet all legal requirements. The brand remains committed to its research-led strategy, which includes recent studies on athletic recovery conducted in partnership with academic institutions. This ruling serves as a reminder to supplement companies that regulatory bodies scrutinize the total context of marketing materials, even when attempts are made to redact specific prohibited terms.