Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations — Labeling Rules for Food Sales and Advertising
Interlink編集部What is the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations?
The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations is a law that regulates unfair representations that mislead consumers regarding the quality, content, price, and transaction terms of products and services, while also restricting excessive premiums and gifts. Its official name is the "Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations."
This law covers both "representation regulation," which restricts misleading representations, and "premium regulation," which restricts excessive gifts. In practice, representation regulation tends to be more problematic in sectors like food, health foods, supplements, imported food products, foods marketed with cosmetic claims, and e-commerce products.
In the food sector, the scope of confirmation includes not only the labeling on packaging as regulated under the Food Labeling Act but also sales pages, advertisements, flyers, in-store POP, brochures, social media posts, video ads, landing pages (LP), e-mail newsletters, and campaign displays.
This article focuses mainly on the representation regulations under the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, which are relevant to food labeling and imported food logistics practice. It organizes key points about false representation of excellence, misleading advantageous representations, non-evidence-based advertising regulations, premium regulations, the relationship with the Food Labeling Act, the Health Promotion Act, and the Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act, along with important checks when selling imported food products.
Scope Covered in this Article
| Content Covered | Organization in this Article | Contents to Confirm as Separate Topics |
|---|---|---|
| Basics of the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations | Organized as a law covering both unfair representation regulations and premium regulations. | Administrative sanctions, surcharges, and case-by-case legality assessments require expert consultation. |
| Representation Regulations | Focuses on false representation of excellence, misleading advantageous representations, and non-evidence-based advertising regulations. | Legal assessment of individual advertisements should be based on the displayed content and supporting materials. |
| Premium Regulations | Summarizes basic precautions for lotteries, purchase benefits, gifts, campaigns, etc. | Details of premium values, provision methods, and lottery categories require detailed confirmation. |
| Relation with Food Labeling | Differentiates between label display under the Food Labeling Act and advertisement/sales display regulated by the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations. | Ingredients, allergens, nutritional information, etc., are confirmed under the Food Labeling Act. |
| Imported Food Logistics Practice | Addresses points of caution when using overseas manufacturers' advertising expressions for the Japanese market. | Food Sanitation Act, food labeling standards, import notification, and quarantine are handled under separate systems. |
| Health and Functional Claims | Examines the relationship between expressions of health benefits, functionality, effects, and reasonable supporting materials. | The Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act, Health Promotion Act, functional food labeling, and specified health foods are confirmed separately. |
| Price and Campaign Displays | Organizes risks of misleading advantageous representations such as regular prices, time-limited offers, free shipping, lowest price claims, and discount displays. | Double pricing displays, premium value limits, and lottery plans need individual condition verifications. |
Purpose and Background of the System
The purpose of the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations is to prevent representations that make products or services appear significantly better or more advantageous than they really are, thereby protecting an environment where consumers can make voluntary and rational purchasing decisions.
Consumers base their purchasing decisions on advertisements, sales pages, packaging, price displays, and campaign notices. If these representations are far from reality, consumers may end up purchasing products they otherwise would not have chosen.
In the food sector, factors such as quality, origin, manufacturing method, ingredients, health effects, functionality, price, time-limited offers, and comparative displays greatly influence purchase decisions. Therefore, it is necessary to review not only food labels but also advertising and sales page expressions as an overall impression presented to consumers.
Situations Where the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations Applies
| Situation | Items to Confirm | Common Problematic Representations | Practical Points of Attention |
|---|---|---|---|
| When using food labels together with advertisements | Packaging, sales pages, product descriptions, text within images | Labels may be appropriate, but advertisements claim excessive efficacy or quality | Labels and advertisements should be reviewed as a whole, not separately. |
| When selling on e-commerce sites | Product pages, landing pages, quoted reviews, ranking displays, price displays | Unsubstantiated No.1 claims, regular prices, time-limited offers, claims of noticeable effects | Confirm the impression the consumer receives on the screen. |
| When promoting on social media or video | Social media posts, video ads, influencer posts, text within images | Efficacy claims disguised as personal opinions, exaggerated before-and-after images | Confirm whether the content is advertisement, existence of supporting data, and the scope of expression. |
| When localizing imported foods into Japanese | Overseas manufacturer materials, translated advertisements, seller-created sales texts | Literal translations of health effect or quality claims used overseas | Recheck under Japan’s Food Labeling Act, Health Promotion Act, Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act, and the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations. |
| When running discounts or campaigns | Regular prices, discount rates, free shipping, time-limited offers, purchase benefits | Regular prices without sales history, unclear discount conditions, de facto continuous limited-time displays | Confirm price history, applicable time periods, products, and condition disclosures. |
| When making comparative displays | Comparisons with other companies, industry lowest price, No.1 claims, highest quality, sales performance | Claims of superiority without clear comparison targets or survey conditions | Confirm comparison targets, survey methods, timing of survey, and supporting data. |
| When attaching premiums or purchase benefits | Lotteries, gifts, purchase benefits, draws, point rewards | Excessive premiums, campaigns with unclear conditions | Confirm premium regulations separately from representation regulations. |
Application Requirements and Items Often Excluded
| Category | Content | Points to Check | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Commonly Applicable Types of Claims | Claims made by businesses about the content, quality, price, or transaction terms of products or services. | Check product pages, advertisements, labels, SNS, in-store POPs, and campaign claims. | Applicable regardless of whether the medium is paper or web-based. |
| Misleading Claims Regarding Quality (Superior Misrepresentation) | Claims that make the quality, standards, ingredients, manufacturing method, effects, or functionality appear significantly superior to reality. | Verify the claim content against actual facts, supporting documents, and comparison targets. | Displays that cause misunderstanding are problematic even if not made intentionally. |
| Misleading Claims Regarding Advantageous Conditions (Advantageous Misrepresentation) | Claims that make price, discounts, duration, shipping fees, perks, or transaction conditions appear more advantageous than they are in reality. | Confirm actual normal prices, discount conditions, applicable periods, and exceptions. | Small or unclear condition disclosures can also be problematic. |
| Unsubstantiated Advertisement Regulation | Claims regarding effects or performance that may require submission of reasonable supporting evidence. | Check test data, survey materials, research documentation, and coherence with displayed claims. | Even if there are materials, they are insufficient if they do not substantiate the claims. |
| Claims Difficult to Definitively Exclude | Personal impressions, experiences, reviews, SNS posts, and expressions within images. | Confirm whether these are used as business advertising claims. | Simply stating “personal opinion” does not grant unrestricted usage. |
| Mere Statements of Fact | Claims that objectively and accurately show facts. | Check the basis for facts, timing of claims, conditions, and exceptions. | Emphasizing only part of the facts may cause overall consumer misperception. |
| Internal Documents and Import Materials | Non-advertising internal confirmation documents or materials for imports. | Check if they are repurposed as external sales claims. | Directly using overseas manufacturer materials on EC pages can conflict with advertising regulations. |
Comparison Table: Differences Between Misleading Quality Claims and Misleading Advantageous Claims
| Comparison Item | Misleading Quality Claims | Misleading Advantageous Claims | Practical Points to Check |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Targets | Quality, standards, content, ingredients, manufacturing methods, effects, performance, etc. | Price, discount rates, transaction terms, shipping fees, campaign conditions, etc. | Distinguish and verify if the claim is about quality or transaction conditions. |
| Typical Examples in Food | Expressions such as highest quality, completely additive-free, proven effects, doctor recommended, health benefits. | Claims like regular price, half-price for a limited time, free shipping, lowest price, limited-time offer. | Quality and price claims are sometimes used simultaneously in foods. |
| Evidence to Check | Ingredients, manufacturing methods, test documents, quality standards, comparison materials, reasonable substantiation. | Sales performance, regular price records, discount periods, applicable conditions, shipping fee conditions. | Verify if the evidence corresponds to the claims made. |
| Problematic Expressions | Claims that give the impression of quality or effects being significantly better than reality. | Claims that give the impression of prices or conditions being significantly more advantageous than reality. | The consumer's perceived impression is prioritized over the business intent. |
| Points of Caution for Imported Foods | Direct translations of wellness claims, natural, high-quality, additive-free expressions from overseas can be problematic. | Comparisons with overseas sales prices, converted yen prices, and campaign conditions can cause issues. | Reconfirm the claims for the Japanese domestic market. |
Comparison Table: Differences Between Advertising Regulation and Premiums Regulation
| Comparison Item | Advertising Regulation | Premiums Regulation | Practical Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Main Targets | Claims about the quality, content, price, and transaction terms of products or services. | Premiums, benefits, giveaways provided to buyers or applicants. | Confirm both advertising texts and campaign details. |
| Problematic Practices | Claims that mislead consumers to believe the product is superior or more advantageous than reality. | Providing excessive premiums or inappropriate prize campaigns. | “Appropriateness of claims” and “limit on premiums” should be checked separately. |
| Examples in Food Sales | Health benefits, additive-free, production area, price, No.1 claims. | Buyer giveaways, lottery prizes, purchase benefits over a certain amount. | Both may simultaneously cause issues in promotional planning. |
| Documents to Review | Advertisement drafts, sales pages, supporting documents, price records, comparison materials. | Value of premiums, delivery methods, target persons, application conditions, campaign periods. | Confirm both claims and premiums during planning stages. |
| Common Practical Pitfalls | Only checking labels but neglecting EC pages or SNS advertisements. | Treating premiums as minor items and forgetting to verify them. | Post-launch corrections may require ad replacements or product recalls. |
Comparison Table with Other Systems
| System | Main Purpose | Main Items for Verification | Differences from the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations | Precautions in Food Business Practice |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations | To prevent representations that mislead consumers or excessive provision of premiums. | Advertisements, sales pages, price displays, campaigns, SNS, in-store POP, etc. | Verifies misrepresentations in displays and excessiveness of premium offers. | Sales displays other than labels are also subject to verification. |
| Food Labeling Act | To correctly indicate required labeling matters on food containers and packaging. | Ingredients, additives, allergens, expiration dates, storage methods, nutritional information, etc. | The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations checks for misrepresentations not only on labels but also in advertisements. | Even if the label is appropriate, problems arise if the advertisement is exaggerated. |
| Health Promotion Act | To prevent false or exaggerated claims about health maintenance and promotion effects. | Health foods, supplements, advertisements claiming health benefits, etc. | Separately from the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, it verifies the appropriateness of health effect expressions. | Both systems should be checked simultaneously for health-related claims. |
| Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act | To regulate quality, efficacy, and safety of pharmaceuticals, quasi-drugs, cosmetics, and medical devices. | Efficacy, ingredients, usage purposes, advertising expressions, sales categories, etc. | Before applying the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, it checks whether food products claim pharmaceutical-like effects. | Expressions claiming disease treatment or prevention in foods require special caution. |
| Food Sanitation Act | A system to ensure food safety, import declarations, inspections, and standards compliance. | Food, additives, utensils, containers and packaging, import declarations, inspections, etc. | The Food Sanitation Act checks safety and import procedures, while the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations verifies misrepresentations in sales displays. | Even after import declarations are complete, advertising and display should be checked separately. |
Misleading Representations of Excellence
Misleading representations of excellence refer to depictions that cause consumers to mistakenly believe that the quality, standards, or content of goods or services are significantly better than they actually are.
In the food sector, when using expressions like "top quality," "completely additive-free," "doctor recommended," "proven effective," or "health results guaranteed," it is necessary to carefully verify the actual quality, ingredients, supporting evidence, and relationships to comparison targets.
Particularly for claims emphasizing efficacy or performance, reasonable supporting evidence for the displayed content is required. Using strong claims without evidence could lead to issues under the false advertising regulation.
Misleading Representations of Advantage
Misleading representations of advantage refer to representations about price or transaction terms that cause consumers to misunderstand them as significantly more favorable than they really are.
For example, when using labels like "regular price," "limited time offer," "half price now," "free shipping," or "industry's lowest price," it is necessary to check whether actual sales records, period, comparison targets, and condition descriptions are appropriate.
Especially in e-commerce sales, it should be confirmed that discount displays, coupons, subscription terms, shipping conditions, first-time prices, and cancellation terms are clearly shown on the screen.
False Advertising Regulation
False advertising regulation is a system under which, if requested by authorities, businesses must provide reasonable supporting documents for claims about efficacy or performance. Failure to produce such evidence may result in the representation being treated as unfair advertising.
For foods and health foods, when using expressions like "proven effective," "noticeable in a short period," "scientifically proven," or "expert recommended," supporting evidence for these claims is required.
In actual logistics practice, simply having documents is insufficient. The effectiveness stated, target consumers, conditions of intake, usage duration, testing methods, and comparison targets must correspond appropriately to the contents of the supporting evidence.
Relationship with Premium Regulations
The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations not only regulates unfair representations but also restricts excessive provision of premiums. When carrying out lotteries, campaigns, giveaways, or purchase bonuses, confirmation of the value and method of providing premiums is separately required.
In food sales, attention often focuses on verifying display content, but when conducting sales promotions such as "lottery prizes for purchasers" or "bonuses for purchases above a certain amount," premium regulations must be checked separately from representation regulations.
Moreover, if the campaign display itself is unclear, it could also become an issue of misleading advantageous representation. Not only the value of premiums, but also application conditions, target products, application periods, winning conditions, and purchase requirements should be clearly stated.
Precautions in Imported Food Practice
For imported foods, simply translating advertisements, product descriptions, and package expressions created by overseas manufacturers into Japanese may not comply with Japan's labeling regulations.
Especially for health foods, supplements, functional foods, natural or premium foods, and origin-appeal products, it is necessary to confirm consistency between ingredients, origin, production methods, efficacy, comparative expressions, and price displays with supporting evidence.
Even advertising expressions permitted overseas require review within Japan from the perspectives of the Food Labeling Act, Health Promotion Act, Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act, and Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations.
System Application Flow
- Confirm whether the target indication concerns the quality, content, price, transaction conditions, or promotional giveaways related to the product or service.
- Identify the media used for the indication, such as labels, advertisements, e-commerce pages, SNS, videos, in-store POP, or campaign displays.
- If the indication emphasizes quality, ingredients, effects, or performance, check for potential misleading quality claims.
- If the indication emphasizes price, discounts, duration, shipping fees, or transaction conditions, check for potential misleading advantageous claims.
- For claims about effects or performance, verify whether reasonable supporting evidence exists.
- When making comparative claims, confirm the comparison target, survey method, survey timing, and condition indications.
- When offering prizes, giveaways, lotteries, or purchase incentives, check whether prize regulations need to be confirmed.
- For food, health foods, or imported foods, verify the relationship with the Food Labeling Act, Health Promotion Act, and Pharmaceutical Affairs Act.
- Check whether the overall consumer impression aligns with the actual product content and transaction conditions.
- If issues are identified, perform label correction, preparation of supporting documents, addition of conditions, and expert review before sales start.
Common Practical Issues
| Case | Issue | Points to Confirm | Practical Response |
|---|---|---|---|
| Direct translation of health effect claims from overseas manufacturers | May raise issues under Japan’s Pharmaceutical Affairs Act, Health Promotion Act, and Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations. | Original text, translation, efficacy claims, supporting evidence, sales target | Review the expression specifically for the Japanese market and amend if needed. |
| Claiming "completely additive-free" | If inconsistent with actual raw materials, additives, or manufacturing processes, it may be a misleading quality claim. | Raw materials, additives, manufacturing processes, comparison targets, consumer impressions | If the basis is unclear, limit or revise the expression. |
| Displaying discounts based on a "regular price" | If there is no actual sales record at the regular price, this may be a misleading advantageous claim. | Past sales prices, sales periods, applicable products, discount conditions | Confirm the basis for the regular price and clarify the condition statements. |
| Claiming "No.1" or "highest quality" | If comparison targets or survey methods are unclear, this may be a misleading quality or advantageous claim. | Survey body, survey timing, comparison targets, survey coverage, supporting evidence | If the basis cannot be shown, avoid those claims or review the expression. |
| Displaying "limited time only" or "now only" claims constantly | If the sales condition is regularly ongoing but presented as limited, this may be a misleading advantageous claim. | Implementation period, past campaigns, normal sales conditions, end schedule | Clearly specify period and conditions, and avoid limited-term claims inconsistent with the actual status. |
| Using reviews or testimonials in advertising | Even personal impressions can mislead consumers if used in advertising. | Review content, posting method, representativeness, effect claims, notes | Avoid exaggerated testimonials or overly generalized expressions. |
| Providing purchase incentives or gifts | Prize regulations may need to be checked when offering giveaways. | Prize value, provision method, target persons, application conditions, purchase conditions | Check display regulations and prize regulations separately. |
| Inconsistent expressions between labels and e-commerce pages | Even if labels are appropriate, excessive quality or effect claims on e-commerce pages may cause problems. | Labels, product pages, text in images, advertising copy, SNS posts | Cross-check all media for consistency before sales start. |
Practical Scenario 1: Localizing Overseas Health Food Advertisements into Japanese
If an overseas manufacturer’s advertisement for a health food product includes claims such as "boosts immunity," "eliminates fatigue," or "improves constitution in a short period," directly translating and posting these on domestic e-commerce pages could cause issues.
In this case, it is necessary to check not only the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations but also the Health Promotion Act and Pharmaceutical Affairs Act. Even though the product is sold as food, claims about disease treatment or prevention or strong effects on bodily functions may fall under different regulatory frameworks.
In actual practice, overseas advertisements, translation drafts, ingredients, sales categories, supporting documentation, importer sales pages, and SNS posts are all reviewed together. It is important to evaluate based on the impression given to Japanese consumers rather than assuming that expressions used overseas are acceptable.
Practical Scenario 2: Displaying Large Discounts from Regular Prices
If an e-commerce site displays "Regular price 5,000 yen, now only 2,980 yen," the key issue is whether there is an actual history of sales at the regular price.
If there is no record of sales at the regular price, or if the higher price was only shown for a very short period, consumers may be misled into thinking the discount is substantial.
Required documentation to confirm includes past sales prices, sales periods, sales records, applicable products, campaign periods, and discount conditions. When displaying discount claims, the basis for the price and conditions should be available and clear.
Practical Scenario 3: Implementing Purchase Gift Campaigns
When running campaigns such as "All purchasers get an expensive novelty gift" or "Chance to win luxury prizes by lottery" to promote imported food sales, it is necessary to confirm not only display regulations but also prize regulations.
Even if the advertising text complies, the value and provision method of the prizes might raise issues under prize regulations. Additionally, unclear campaign conditions may also cause misleading advantageous claims.
In actual logistics practice, it is important to verify the value of prizes, the method of provision, eligible participants, application conditions, purchase conditions, campaign period, target products, and announcement texts. For sales promotion planning, it is essential to check the advertising expressions and prize contents as a unified whole.
Points to Check on Advertising and Sales Pages
The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations covers not only labels on containers and packaging but also online product pages, advertising banners, landing pages (LP), email newsletters, SNS posts, videos, and in-store displays.
When importing food for domestic sale, it is important to check not only labels but also advertising text, product descriptions, text inside images, campaign presentations, and price displays before the sales start.
Also, even when using materials created by advertising agencies or overseas manufacturers, if the domestic seller responsible for displaying the content in Japan fails to confirm the content properly, it could lead to later requirements for display corrections, sales suspension, administrative actions, and responses to business partners.
Four-Column Judgment Checklist
| Situation for Confirmation | Parties to Confirm With | Items to Confirm | Action if Issues Are Found |
|---|---|---|---|
| When creating sales pages for imported food | Importer, sales personnel, advertising personnel, manufacturer | Product descriptions, quality claims, health claims, text within images, supporting evidence | If there is exaggeration, correct it before starting sales. |
| When translating overseas advertisements | Overseas manufacturer, importer, translator, specialist | Original text, translation, efficacy claims, comparison expressions, consistency with domestic regulations | Do not translate literally; recheck for Japanese market-appropriate display. |
| When promoting health benefits or functionalities | Importer, quality control, advertising personnel, specialist | Display content, supporting evidence, target audience, consumption conditions, relation to Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act and Health Promotion Act | If evidence is insufficient, weaken or remove the expression. |
| When displaying prices or discounts | Sales personnel, e-commerce staff, accounting, advertising personnel | Actual regular prices, discount period, target products, shipping conditions, subscription terms | Clarify terms and avoid limited-time expressions that do not reflect the actual situation. |
| When displaying phrases like No.1 or highest quality | Advertising personnel, survey company, importer, specialist | Comparison targets, survey methods, timing, supporting evidence, scope of the claim | If evidence is unclear, either do not use or clearly state the conditions. |
| When running campaigns or purchase bonuses | Sales personnel, advertising personnel, legal department, prize planning staff | Prize value, provision method, eligible participants, application conditions, campaign period | Confirm advertising display regulations and prize regulations separately. |
| When using SNS or reviews for advertising | SNS personnel, advertising personnel, importer, external contractors | Post content, advertising nature, use of testimonials, efficacy expressions, disclaimers | Do not modify personal impressions to look like general effectiveness. |
| Final checks before sales start | Importer, sales personnel, advertising personnel, quality control, specialist | Consistency of labels, e-commerce pages, advertisements, SNS, in-store POP, campaign displays | Correct differences across media and keep supporting documents. |
Common Misunderstandings
| Misunderstanding | Correct Understanding | Practical Caution |
|---|---|---|
| If food labels comply, then the advertising is also fine | Even if labels comply with the Food Labeling Act, advertisements and sales pages may still violate the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations. | Check labels, e-commerce pages, advertisements, and SNS together. |
| Translating overseas manufacturer expressions is safe | Advertising expressions used overseas may become unfair representations or conflict with other domestic regulations in Japan. | Reconfirm as Japanese market-appropriate display. |
| Having any supporting documents means strong efficacy claims are allowed | Supporting evidence must correspond to the displayed content, target audience, conditions, and scope of effects. | Check not only the presence but also the relation between evidence and displayed claims. |
| Simply writing “personal opinion” allows free expression of effects | Even testimonials and reviews used in advertising may impact consumers’ impressions and could be problematic. | Be cautious not to present exceptional individual experiences as general effects. |
| Regular price can be freely set | The regular price display requires actual sales records and price basis. | Check past sales records, period, and target products. |
| The Act only regulates premiums (prizes) | The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations regulates both unfair representations and prizes. | Separate checks on advertising display and campaign prizes are necessary. |
| Small SNS posts do not need checks | Even SNS posts used for sales promotion can be regulated as advertising display. | Check post content, advertising nature, commissioning relationship, and displayed content. |
Practical Points to Note
When reviewing the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, check whether there is reasonable evidence for the displayed content, if there is no discrepancy between consumer impression and actual facts, and that comparison targets and conditions are clearly specified.
Operators handling imported food should assume that even if advertising expressions are acceptable overseas, they may not be usable as-is in Japan, and simultaneously check compliance with the Food Labeling Act, Health Promotion Act, Pharmaceutical and Medical Device Act, and Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations.
Especially, expressions such as health effects, functionalities, additive-free, natural, highest quality, No.1, regular price, limited time, free shipping, and purchase benefits are easy to use for sales promotion but may lead to unfair representation if the evidence or conditions are unclear.
The Importance of Record Keeping
For compliance with the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, it is important to keep the supporting documents based on which the display content was created at that time. Instead of looking for the basis after the advertisement is published, the basis, conditions, comparative data, and price records should be confirmed before the display.
Documents to be kept include product specifications, ingredient lists, test data, survey data, comparative materials, price records, campaign conditions, advertising manuscripts, EC page drafts, SNS post drafts, revision histories, and expert verification records.
If records are retained, it becomes easier to explain the basis of the display. Conversely, even if the display content matches reality, it may be difficult to provide explanations later if the supporting documents are missing.
Summary
The Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations regulates unfair representations that may mislead consumers about the quality, content, price, or transaction conditions of products and services, as well as the provision of excessive premiums.
In the food sector, not only label displays under the Food Labeling Act but also advertisements, EC pages, SNS, in-store POPs, and campaign displays are subject to review.
False representation of superiority, false representation of advantage, unsubstantiated advertising regulation, and premium regulations each require different subjects for confirmation and supporting documents. Particularly for imported foods, it is necessary to re-confirm that overseas manufacturers’ expressions are not used as-is for the Japanese market but are reviewed according to domestic regulations.
In compliance with the Act against Unjustifiable Premiums and Misleading Representations, it is important to organize the display content, supporting documents, pricing conditions, comparison conditions, and premium provision conditions before sales start, while also confirming their relationship with the Food Labeling Act, Health Promotion Act, and Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices Act.
