"A vegetable candy is equivalent to a plate of vegetables" or "milk helps reduce joint pain"... are "exaggerated" advertisements by celebrities that have caused controversy in recent times.
Many celebrities participate in selling on advertising platforms that "explode" and mislead consumers - Photo: Screenshot
With the strong development of online shopping, many brands have changed their sales and advertising methods on online platforms. Live sessions (online sales) attract millions of viewers and hundreds of orders are "closed".
"Explosive" advertising and billion-dollar live sessions
Along with that, the situation of advertising "exaggerating" the uses and ingredients of drugs and functional foods appears everywhere on social networking platforms. Advertisers without medical expertise, even famous people with influence on social networks also freely advertise drugs and functional foods.
It is worth mentioning that in recent days, some KOLs (influencers) have been "exaggerating" a type of pill with the effect of "one pill is equivalent to a plate of vegetables", immediately attracting the attention of the community because the product's effect "hits" the needs of families with children who are lazy to eat vegetables.
Or before that, two famous artists also fell into crisis when advertising a type of milk that can cure diabetes and reduce bone and joint pain.
After receiving public backlash, the vegetable candy brand had to speak up and conclude that the total content of two types of fiber in one vegetable candy is more than 0.2g, along with some vitamins A, B6, B12...
To put this into perspective, a box of 30 vegetable candies contains only 6 grams of fiber (about the same amount of fiber as two medium-sized bananas), showing the difference between reality and advertising.
Doctor Tran Thi Hieu, in charge of the nutrition and dietetics department of Thu Duc Regional General Hospital (HCMC), said that there is no fiber product that can replace green vegetables in the daily diet.
Sorry is enough?
After receiving public backlash, a common response from all celebrities is to "apologize for a mistake". Apologies can ease public anger, but the trust of "customers" has been somewhat reduced.
As an online shopping enthusiast, Ms. Hoa (30 years old, Hanoi) often hunts for sales on celebrity live streams. She said that part of the reason for deciding to buy is to trust the reputation of celebrities. They are influential people, so the sellers will definitely carefully select products.
After the scandals about celebrities advertising false information, Ms. Hoa said she gradually lost faith in the products these people sold. Even some products she bought on live, although discounted, when checked, were more expensive than the regular price shops.
"Sometimes I feel sorry for being too easygoing when buying products. After many incidents, I no longer believe in the reputation of celebrities," Ms. Hoa shared.
Celebrities advertise products, even share real-life experiences on live streams to build credibility. They speak fluently, advertising the miraculous effects of products, but many products are later "exposed" because the advertising is not true.
When seeing public reaction to the product, many celebrities immediately "apologized for the mistake, apologized for not checking carefully". Actors L., T. and many others apologized in similar situations, but the consequences were left to consumers!
According to regulations on administrative sanctions in the field of culture and advertising, advertising that is incorrect or causes confusion about the quantity, quality, price, uses, design, packaging, brand, origin, type, service method, warranty period of registered or announced products, goods, services... will be fined from 60 to 80 million VND, and at the same time forced to dismantle, delete or recall the advertised product.
According to Ms. Pham Khanh Phong Lan, Director of the Ho Chi Minh City Department of Food Safety, celebrities or anyone else who advertises any product should learn carefully about the product, avoiding exaggerating the effects, causing confusion and misunderstanding for consumers. Celebrities should consider carefully when advertising products because it can affect others.
Celebrities need to advertise with their conscience, but above all, strict sanctions are needed, this content needs to be clearly stipulated in the Advertising Law. Consumers also need to practice smart consumption habits, to avoid "losing money and getting sick".
Ms. Lan recommends that people, when using products, especially functional foods, must pay close attention to their origin, check the registration number at the Department of Food Safety (Ministry of Health), or when in doubt about the quality of the product, immediately report it to the authorities.
Miss Thuy Tien, Tiktoker Hang Du Muc (3rd and 4th from left) in an advertisement for a vegetable candy that is causing a stir because its fiber content is too low compared to the advertisement - Illustration photo
Will tighten management
To put an end to the current situation of irresponsible advertising by a number of celebrities, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and other units have drafted a Law amending and supplementing a number of articles of the Advertising Law to submit to the National Assembly.
In this revision, the drafting agency focuses on addressing false advertising and adds regulations on handling if celebrities advertise falsely on social networks.
In particular, influencers (with 500,000 followers or more) must strictly comply with advertising laws and provide specific evidence when evaluating products such as cosmetics and functional foods.
At the same time, directly responsible for advertising content related to features, quality, uses, effects of products, goods, and services. This is to strictly control and prevent false advertising that misleads consumers.
Mr. Nguyen Thanh Phong, former Director of the Food Safety Department (Ministry of Health), also proposed to build a "blacklist" for sites that violate advertising regulations. For advertising businesses without an advertising acceptance certificate, even if the content is not violating, it is still a violation.
Businesses that have received an advertising permit but advertise without the content of the license application will be put on a "blacklist". The list of violations can be made public on many platforms to warn people.
The Vietnam Federation of Commerce and Industry (VCCI) also said that the situation of KOLs and KOCs falsely advertising product features and uses is annoying to consumers.
According to VCCI, it is necessary to define the legal responsibilities of these individuals, but it is necessary to analyze the specific responsibilities between the entities involved in advertising activities.
Celebrities are responsible for conveying the brand message to consumers. They have to rely on the key messages, information, and materials provided by the brand and do the creative work, conveying the message to consumers.
Therefore, in social media advertising activities, the responsibilities of the parties should be specifically defined. The brand is responsible for the product quality (including product uses and features), content, information, and documents provided to KOLs and KOCs.
Celebrities must check and evaluate based on the records and content evidence provided by the business.
VCCI recommends that there should be clear regulations on the responsibilities of those who advertise on social networks, if they do not advertise accurately and cause misunderstandings to people.
4 serious violations in advertising functional foods
According to the Vietnam Association of Functional Foods, current violations of advertising ethics in functional foods are: false, deceptive, and counterfeit advertising; exaggerated, overblown advertising of products; ambiguous, misleading advertising; advertising targeting sensitive subjects (cancer patients, people with serious illnesses).
Online shopping is chosen by many people instead of traditional shopping methods, here celebrities both advertise and close orders - Illustration: D.LIEU
Source: https://tuoitre.vn/nguoi-noi-tieng-quang-cao-lo-san-pham-cu-xin-loi-la-xong-20250307000444314.htm
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