In New Zealand the story of two 14-year-old high school students who embarrassed the international food and drug giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has become a famous part of our cultural history. In 2004, the Auckland teenagers, Anna Devathasan and Jenny Suo, tested the vitamin C levels of the blackcurrant drink Ribena as part of a science project comparing the vitamin content of various drinks. In advertising and product packaging, GSK had claimed that their ready to drink Ribena ‘contained four times the vitamin C of oranges’ and listed the vitamin C content as 7mg per 100ml. But the students found that the product contained minimal or no measurable quantities of the vitamin.
The girls took their findings to GSK who dismissed claims that the packaging was misleading. However further tests conducted in 2007 confirmed the results of the science project and the Commerce Commission (New Zealand’s commercial watchdog) took the company to court. At the trial, GSK pleaded guilty to all 15 charges, were fined $217,000 for breaching the Fair Trading Act and ordered to publish corrective advertisements and a statement on their website.
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