PITTSBURGH (AP) - The Pittsburgh-based parent company of vitamin and supplement retailer GNC is paying $2.25 million to settle Justice Department claims that a dietary supplement was misbranded.
The government says GNC’s Oxy Elite Pro Advanced Formula sold in 2013 contained synthetic stimulants made in China rather than natural plant extracts listed on the label.
The government found GNC relied on information from USPlabs LLC, a Dallas firm indicted in November and awaiting trial on charges that it misrepresented products it tested, sold and labeled. The company has denied wrongdoing.
GNC says it “remains committed to maintaining robust compliance policies and procedures, and holding third-party vendors and suppliers accountable for those standards.”
Benjamin Mizer, head of the Justice Department’s civil division, says companies like GNC must do more to avoid selling “products containing questionable and untested ingredients.”
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