BEIJING, March 29 -- A Chinese consumer in Jiangxi Province has filed a complaint against Colgate-Palmolive concerning the effectiveness of its whitening toothpaste.

    The Beijing-based Star Daily newspaper quoted Jiangxi media reports as saying that a male consumer named Chen in Nanchang city, capital of Jiangxi Province, has lodged a suit with the local Nanchang Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce on Monday.

    The suit, against the Guangzhou-based Colgate-Palmolive company, says he has used several tubes of the 'Whitening' toothpaste but has seen far less progress than what he expected from the advertised 14-day tooth whitening program.

    The Nanchang Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce has accepted the lawsuit and initiated a false advertising investigation of the toothpaste product made by Colgate-Palmolive, the newspaper said.

    Consumer: Colgate-Palmolive fails to live up to effectiveness claim

    The consumer, Mr. Chen, says he bought the Whitening toothpaste in a supermarket after he was struck by the advertisement on the package claiming, "14-day fast whitening effectiveness".

    After using several tubes of the toothpaste, he has seen little improvement in the color of his teeth. So he began to question the effectiveness of the toothpaste and the validity of the advertising claims made by the toothpaste maker, Colgate-Palmolive.

    Nanchang Advertising Watchdog: Complaint case and investigation underway

    Reporters arrived at the Nanchang Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce Monday with samples of the Colgate-Palmolive's toothpaste provided by the plaintiff, Mr. Chen.

    The government watchdog has already launched an investigation into the possible fraud in Colgate-Palmolive's Whitening toothpaste advertisement.

    A staff member from the office in charge of business fairness says the office has received many complaints around March 15th, World Consumer Rights Day, about the effectiveness of Colgate-Palmolive's Whitening toothpaste.

    Colgate-Palmolive (Guangzhou): Advertisement based on hospital clinic reporting

    The Colgate-Palmolive official in Guangzhou city says advertising on its package of Whitening toothpaste claiming "14-day fast whitening effectiveness" are based on a 4-week clinical report conducted by the Sichuan University Oral Hospital and its professor Hu Deyu.

    Clinic Report: Does not explicitly say "14-Day fast whitening effectiveness"

    Staff members from the Nanchang Municipal Bureau of Industry and Commerce quote the original report from Sichuan University Oral Hospital, saying Colgate-Palmolive Whitening toothpaste can effectively lessen or reduce darkness on teeth after using it for two or four weeks.

    The report never explicitly claims "14-day fast whitening effectiveness". The bureau staff adds that the manufacturer's claim has not yet won an approval certificate from the relevant Chinese authority. So Colgate-Palmolive's Whitening toothpaste advertisement in Guangzhou city has become the focus of suspected false advertising and unfair competition.

    (Source: CRIENGLISH.com)