Is GSK's Horlicks a Medicine, Asks Judge

I'm strong to the finish, 'cause I eats me Spinach

Following on from an earlier post of mine that the British and American media don't seem to be interested in, sees GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) lawyers in Bangladesh argue that GSK do not need permission to sell Horlicks in Bangladesh. Further, it sees the judge ask GSK if Horlicks, a malt drink marketed and manufactured by GSK, is a medicine, given the claims on the product label.

New Age Bangladesh is reporting that, on hearing both arguments, the judge asked GSK's legal team, "Is it a drug? Do you have drug administration’s permission?"

Several claims have been made on GSK's Horlicks, including that the consumption of it can "make you grow three times faster."

Glaxo Chairman and General Manager Failed to Show for Court Hearing

This from the New Age...

Prosecutor Kamrul Hasan said that on its label Horlicks contains words like ‘taller’, ‘stronger’ and ‘sharper’ next to the brand name, which may give rise to the idea among consumers that they needed to rely on the product for gaining the qualities. 

Kamrul said that the label further confirmed that their claim was proven ‘clinically’.

‘I challenge defence lawyer to prove its claim before the court,’ said Kamrul.

The label of Horlicks Classic Malt, Kamrul said, discusses about Horlicks drinkers showing five signs of healthy growth— ‘bone circumference’, ‘strong muscle’, ‘heightened concentration’, ‘healthy blood’ and ‘gaining weight rightly’. 

The label also listed numerous health benefits of drinking Horlicks, including the strengthening of bones and muscle, development of the brain, improving metabolism and ‘blood health’ necessary for a strong immune system. 

Kamrul said that the label even claimed that children might not get the necessary nutrition from regular food and their nutrition demand could be met by drinking Horlicks daily. 

Arrest warrants have been issued for GSK's chairman, M Azizul Haque, its General Manager, Prashanta Pandey and Azim Uddin Ahmed, chairman of Mutual Food Products Limited, the company responsible for processing and packaging of Horlicks in Bangladesh.

Haque and Pandey failed to show for the court appearance whilst Ahmed was present during the hearing and later granted bail.

It seems as though the longer a product stays on the market, the more manufacturers can make outlandish claims, as long as they add the words "clinically proven" next to the claim. GSK also claims Horlick's is 'clinically proven' to improve attention and concentration. Begs the question why they don't market it as an ADHD drug!

How on earth did we get from this...

...to this...

('clinically proven' to improve attention and concentration')

Nothing to do with the Beecham Group (now GSK) acquiring Horlicks in 1969, huh?

If one thing, it shows us how the power of marketing has improved over the years, even though it's all based around exaggeration as depicted in the popular Popeye cartoons of yesteryear. Glaxo has taken the Popeye cartoon and basically added to it a whole bunch of claims that they maintain are 'clinically proven.' I'm with the prosecutor on this one, "I challenge defence lawyer to prove its claim before the court."

Next thing we know, GSK will be claiming that their Lucozade sports drinks are better than water...Oh, hang on a minute, they already made that false claim (Source)

Or maybe that Ribena really is full of vitamin C, yup, they got busted for that too, by two pesky schoolgirls! (Source)

They may even claim that their popular antidepressant, Seroxat, also known as Paxil, is non-habit-forming - Oops (Source)


Bob Fiddaman

Back Story

Bangladesh: GSK Chairman & General Manager Could Face 7 Years in Prison

Bangladesh: GSK Chairman & General Manager Could Face 7 Years in Prison

(Left) M Azizul Haque GlaxoSmithKline Chairman. (Right) Prakash (Prashant) Pandey GlaxoSmithKline General Manager

"For increasing sales, the accused adopted a host of heinous tactics."

It never rains but it pours.

Incidentally, I love rain.

None of the British media has picked up on this, or indeed any other country apart from Bangladesh.

The New Age of Bangladesh, a leading English language daily newspaper, is reporting that an arrest warrant against, M Azizul Haque, who is the chairman, and Prakash (Prashant) Pandey, who is the general manager of GlaxoSmithKline Bangladesh, has been issued for cheating consumers through deceptive advertisements of Horlicks.

Kamrul Hasan, who heads the Department of Inspection for Factories and Establishments in Bangladesh said, "For increasing sales, the accused adopted a host of heinous tactics."

GSK and heinous tactics, surely not?

This from the New Age:

Horlicks Classic Malt

On the label of Horlicks Classic Malt, Kamrul said, five signs of healthy growth are talked about — ‘bone circumference’, ‘strong muscle’, ‘heightened concentration’, ‘healthy blood’ and ‘gaining weight rightly’ — which are confusing and misleading.

The label also listed numerous health benefits of drinking Horlicks, including the strengthening of bones and muscle, development of the brain, improving metabolism and ‘blood health’ necessary for a strong immune system.

Kamrul said that the label even claimed that children might not get the necessary nutrition from regular food and their nutrition demand could be met by drinking Horlicks daily.

‘This is not medicine and a food item cannot ensure so many health benefits alone,’ observed Kamrul.

 Mother’s Horlicks

Staggeringly, on the label of Mother's Horlicks GlaxoSmithKline claimed, "it helps the baby grow in the mother’s womb."

GSK didn't just add these outlandish claims to the labels, Kamrul said, "GSK was seen making similar claims in adverts meant for television consumers and Facebook users."

This from the New Age:

GSK was cheating people by bringing to market a variety of Horlicks products, targeting different groups of consumers like women, children and mothers.

The verified Facebook page of Horlicks Bangladesh show mothers continuously interacting with its updates, mostly being similar advertisements, sharing their desire to feed Horlicks to their kids, often aged about three.

A warrant for the arrest of Azim Uddin Ahmed, chairman of Mutual Food Products Limited, the company responsible for processing and packaging of Horlicks in Bangladesh, was also issued.

If the allegations are proved, the accused will face seven years’ imprisonment or heavy fines, or both.

Here's an example of the misleading ad Glaxo have broadcast across Bangladesh.

A spokesperson for GSK said, "We have not received any notice on the mentioned issue from Bangladesh Food Safety Authority; hence are unable to comment on it now."

Bob Fiddaman