NEWARK, Del. -- The Produce Marketing Association here has filed a claim with the Federal Trade Commission, seeking an investigation of what it calls "unfair and deceptive advertising" by the consumer advocacy group Food & Water.
PMA's action was prompted by a Food & Water advertisement that ran in the Dec. 11 issue of Supermarket News. The ad compared fresh produce to assault weapons and claimed that fresh fruits and vegetables contain toxic pesticide residues that kill thousands of consumers.
The produce trade group filed the request for an FTC investigation Dec. 22, asking the government regulatory agency to enter a cease and desist order declaring the Food & Water ad to be unfair and deceptive, and to prohibit further dissemination of the ad.
"After consulting with our legal counsel, we decided this is the appropriate remedy for us to pursue."
Despite PMA's action, Food & Water has no intention of putting a halt to its ad campaign for now, according to Michael Colby, executive director.
"We're going to continue with the campaign," Colby told SN. "The figures in our ads have been checked and rechecked, and the numbers come from the federal government.