Dr. Oz-Endorsed Green Coffee Bean Extract Maker Reached $9M FTC Settlement

A $9 million settlement was reached with the makers of a green coffee bean extract that was endorsed on popular television programs such as The Dr. Oz Show and The View, resolving claims brought forth by the Federal Trade Commission (FTC).

The FTC alleged that the product was promoted using deceptive advertising practices when the company claimed the supplement was helpful to individuals for losing weight rapidly.

Owner Lindsay Duncan and his supplement companies, Genesis Today Inc. and Pure Health LLC, are barred from making further allegedly deceptive claims about the green coffee bean extract supplement.

Duncan and the companies were required to pay $9 million to consumers, who thought the allegedly natural fat burning pills would help with losing weight, to reimburse them for purchasing the products.

The complaint (which was filed the same day as the settlement), asserted that Duncan appeared on The Dr. Oz Show a number of times and referenced a study, later determined to be flawed, claiming that taking the green coffee bean extract could lead to consumers rapidly losing weight. Duncan allegedly claimed the fat burning pills could help consumers lose 17 pounds and 16 percent of their body fat after 12 weeks of taking the green coffee bean extract.

After Duncan’s appearance on Dr. Oz’s show, the companies sold tens of thousands of dollars worth of the green coffee bean extract weight loss supplement and continued to push for the so-called fat burning pills to be carried on Amazon.com and in Walmart based on the product’s success gained from television appearances, the FTC said.

Applied Food Sciences Inc., the company behind the allegedly deceptive study, was also the target of FTC charges. The company was forced to pay $3.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing it of using the study (which was not ever confirmed to have taken place) to support the marketing of its own green coffee bean extract to help consumers in losing weight.

Jessica Rich, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection, issued a statement following the settlement agreement, saying, “This case shows that the Federal Trade Commission will continue to fight deceptive marketers’ attempts to prey on consumers trying to improve their health.”

The Green Coffee Bean Extract Deceptive Marketing Lawsuit is Federal Trade Commission v. Genesis Today Inc. et al., Case No. 1:15-cv-00062, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas.

Weight Loss Supplement Lawsuit Information

Losing weight is a major concern on the minds of many Americans today, and many people would like a supplement to help them do it naturally. However, many consumers are finding out that the claims surrounding the marketing of weight loss supplements are not always accurate.

Lawyers are currently investigating claims from consumers who have purchased supplements promoted for losing weight, such as green coffee bean extract, garcinia cambogia and raspberry ketones, which were touted as fat burning pills but did not perform as advertised.