Purity Life to sell Akvar 20/50 in Canada

The recently acquired division of SunOpta said it will begin offering Akävar 20/50 to its customer base across Canada.

The product has stepped into some controversy south of the border for claims used in its advertising.

However, Purity Life has not indicated what the exact marketing strategy will be in Canada.

"We view this as a real winning partnership - Dynakor, a leading dietary supplement company in North America, partnering with Purity, the leading distributor of natural health products in Canada," said David Chapman, President of Purity Life.

In the US, media reports say lawyers are investigating whether or not the statements made by Dynakor Pharmacal concerning Akävar 20/50 are false or misleading.

"Eat all you want and still lose weight...automatic caloric restriction!"

claims Dynakor Pharmacal in its website.

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) has been showing itself to clamp down on this type of marketing in the past.

In January, the authority announced settlements totalling $25mn with four well-known weight-loss pill marketers, sending out a warning to companies making unsubstantiated claims to consumers.

"It's a message to legitimate companies that like to push the limits," FTC chair Deborah Platt Majoras said at the time.

The settlements required the marketers of Xenadrine EFX, One A Day Weight Smart, Cortaslim and TrimSpa change their ad claims and cough up the fines for both civil penalties and consumer redress.

" Consumer demand for such products is increasing, and fraudulent or deceptive claims about these products can pose risks to consumers' well-being," FTC said in its Fiscal Year 2008 Congressional Budget Justification summary.

" Going forward, the FTC will continue its aggressive program by focusing its law enforcement on violations that create the greatest risks to consumer health."

However, regardless of any controversy that could surround Akävar 20/50, there is a still a large market for weight loss or weight management products as obesity and weight problems increase worldwide.

According to the 2004 Canadian Community Health Survey, 23.1 percent of Canadians 18 and over were obese, with another 36.1 percent ranked as overweight.

"We will be leveraging our extensive field sales force, inside sales team, our Acton and Vancouver warehouses and our regional/key account managers to quickly secure listings and begin the sale of Akävar 20/50 in advance of the substantial marketing campaign that Dynakor has planned to support this new product," said Chapman.