Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority

CAFIA is a state administration body subordinate to the Ministry of Agriculture. It is a state authority responsible for supervision of safety, quality and labelling of foodstuffs.

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CAFIA continues with inspections of misusing the virus epidemic during Internet sale of food supplements

06/16/2020

Since the beginning of the emergency state, the Czech Agriculture and Food Inspection Authority (CAFIA) has released 49 cases of misusing the concerns of the public related to COVID-19 disease by some sellers of food supplements on the Internet. These sellers offered their products using prohibited medical claims, namely indicating alleged effects against coronavirus. Food supplements are regarded as foodstuffs by legislation and therefore they cannot be assigned by any medical or preventive effects as these are reserved to medicaments only.

Summary of current detections:

1. Website www.aktin.cz advertising food supplement where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “Prevention and cure of coronavirus, …prevention or even cure of COVID-19 disease, use of vitamin C against coronavirus….” Company Selltime s.r.o. is the inspected person.

2. Website www.generica-bohemia.cz advertising food supplement where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “Flu, adenoviruses, RS viruses, coronaviruses and flu and para-flu viruses etc.” Company Generica Bohemia spol. s r.o. is the inspected person.

3. Food supplements offered on www.siddha-ajurveda.cz where the inspected person created bookmark “PACKAGES” with its part “Coronavirus” where consumers could buy, inter alia, food supplements as well. The name of the part of this bookmark itself is regarded as a prohibited medical claim. Ing. Sadajyoti, Zlín is the inspected entity.

4. Website www.spektrumzdravi.cz advertising food supplement where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claim: “preventive measure against coronavirus infection.” Company propeople s.r.o. is the inspected person.

5. Food supplements offered on www.tinktura.eu/cs and website www.tinktura-info.eu/cs advertising food supplements where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “migraine”, section “PROBLEMS” was created on the website with its sub-section “moulds”, “diarrhoea”, “constipation”. The names of these sub-sections themselves are regarded as prohibited medical claims. Company Bylinné kapky, s.r.o. is the inspected person.

6. Food supplements offered on www.lekarna-brankovice.cz where the inspected person created subcategory “COVID-19” where consumers could purchase, inter alia, food supplements. The name of the subcategory itself is regarded as a prohibited medical claim. The inspected person further indicated unauthorised medical claims: “Iceland Lichen contains a range of active substances which have almost antibiotic effect (lichenin, isolichenin, iodide). Lichen is recommended against inflammation of upper airways and for support of expectoration. Lichen is traditionally used against diarrhoea, stomach and intestinal catarrhs.” Entity Miroslava Odrazilová, Brankovice is the inspected person.

7. Food supplements offered on www.tiandebreclav.cz, the inspected person created bookmark “COVID-19 – TIPS AND RECOMMENDATIONS“, where consumers could purchase, inter alia, food supplements. The name of the bookmark itself is regarded as a prohibited medical claim. The inspected person further indicated unauthorised medical claims, such as: “COVID-19, Tips and recommendations for help of TianDe in the fight against coronavirus.” Company AZ Corporation Czech s.r.o. is the inspected person.

8. Food supplements offered on www.zbozizkonkurzu.cz, www.habu.cz a www.aaahome.cz where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “Non-specific preparation of the body for possible COVID-19 infection“. Company Qwerty Systems s.r.o. is the inspected person.

9.Website www.eccevita.cz advertising and selling food supplements where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “SARS-CoV-2 and our immunity” and indicated unauthorised medical claims when offering food supplement: “Stop viruses!”, “viruses”, “flu and cold”, “Diseases and prevention”, “Arthritis”, “Asthma and allergies”, “Pain”, “Diabetes”, “Herpes viruses”, “Chronic fatigue syndrome”, “Flu and Cold”, “Skin diseases”, “Candida, moulds”, “Myomas”, “Tumours”, “Infertility”, “Oncologic diseases”, “Osteoporosis”, “Diarrhoea”, “Ulcers”, etc. Company Ecce Vita, spol. s r.o. is the inspected person.

10.Leaflet advertising food supplement under name “Contravirus” where the inspected person indicated unauthorised medical claims: “Reduce the risk of infection”, “CONTRAVIRUS”, “PREVENTION AND CURE OF RESPIRATORY DISEASES”, “Pain of throat, inflammatory lung and bronchial tubes conditions as well as inflammation of cavities, “allergens, bacteria and viruses which may very quickly attack human respiration system”, “against these harmful factors”, “microorganisms”, “cure”, “respiratory diseases”, “running nose”, “cough”, “inflammation of nasopharynx”, “COUGHS”, “COUGHS”, “Cough”, “inflammation of mucosa”. Self-cleaning mechanism is concerned during which and under specific impulsive contractions of breathing muscles, undesirable substances, which are not visible to the naked eye, are excreted. Company Naturprodukt CZ spol. s r. o. is the inspected person.

Using prohibited medical claims the operators failed to meet requirements of Regulation No. 1169/2011 on the Provision of Information to Consumers as well as the Act No. 40/1995 Coll., on Regulation of Advertisement.

CAFIA will initiate an administrative procedure on imposition of fine with the inspected persons.

CAFIA currently deals with further cases of suspicion of the use of unauthorised medical claims at food supplements in relation to the virus outbreak. CAFIA will continue with the inspections of the use of unauthorised medical claims at this type of food supplements in the future.

CAFIA has already informed of similar detections in its press releases of 27^th March 2020, 19^th March 2020, 8^th April 2020, 17^th April 2020, 11^th May 2020 and 26^th May 2020.