MonaVie: Difference between revisions

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous editNext edit →
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
There is no reference for this information.
Please provide referenced content before making edits
Line 26: Line 26:
*Mike Kennedy, Chief Medical Officer
*Mike Kennedy, Chief Medical Officer
*Devin D. Thorpe, Chief Financial Officer
*Devin D. Thorpe, Chief Financial Officer
*Amy Cowley, Vice President of Finance
*Jeff Graham, Vice President of Product Development
*Jeff Graham, Vice President of Product Development


Revision as of 20:02, 10 October 2008

MonaVie
Company typePrivate
IndustryMulti-level marketing
Founded2005
HeadquartersSalt Lake City, Utah
Key people
Dallin Larsen, Henry Marsh, Dell Brown, Randy Larsen, Amy Cowley, Mark Iscaro
ProductsMonaVie Original Blend, MonaVie Active Blend, MonaVie Pulse Blend, MonaVie Gel Packs, MonaVie Active Gel Packs
WebsiteMonaVie.com
MonaVie bottles.

MonaVie is a line of multi-level marketed (MLM) juice products made from blended fruit juice concentrates, açaí pulp powder and purée. MonaVie has been the subject of recent media controversy, and several sources have questioned both the product's value and the legality of claims regarding its reputed health benefits. The manufacturer of MonaVie products, as well as some of its senior distributors, were involved in four lawsuits between 2007 and 2008.

Company Overview

MonaVie juice was originally launched in January 2005 by MLM company Monarch Health Sciences, which was founded in 2003 as a distributor of diet and weight loss supplements. In 2005, the executives of Monarch founded MonaVie LLC/MonaVie Inc., a privately-held MLM company based in Salt Lake City, Utah. The newly formed company took over the bottling, distribution, and marketing responsibilities for MonaVie juice products. Monarch Health Sciences and MonaVie, Inc. were both founded by Dallin Larsen, who graduated from Brigham Young University with a B.S. degree in Finance.[citation needed] Larsen previously held senior executive positions with the MLM companies Dynamic Essentials and Usana.

Executives

  • Dallin Larsen, Chairman and CEO
  • Henry Marsh, Executive Vice President
  • Randy Larsen, Executive Vice President/Chief Operations Officer (former)
  • Dell Brown, Chief Operations Officer (current)
  • Mike Kennedy, Chief Medical Officer
  • Devin D. Thorpe, Chief Financial Officer
  • Jeff Graham, Vice President of Product Development

Medical Advisory Board

  • Denise Bruner
  • Lyle Mason
  • Jose F. Allongo
  • Vicki Berkus
  • Roger Rinn

Product Overview

The MonaVie product line consists of three forms of bottled juice -- MonaVie Original, MonaVie Active, and MonaVie Pulse -- as well as gel pack versions of the products. The suggested retail prices for MonaVie Original, Active, and Pulse juice are $39, $45, and $46 respectively, per one 750-mL (25.5 oz.) bottle. The manufacturer's recommended daily serving size is 2 to 4 ounces.

MonaVie Original and Active juices list the following ingredients: blend of açaí (freeze-dried powder and purée); 100% fruit juice from concentrate (white grape, apple, acerola, purple grape, cranberry, passion fruit, apricot, prune, kiwifruit, blueberry, wolfberry (goji), pomegranate, lychee, camu camu); fruit purée (pear, banana, bilberry); citric acid, sodium benzoate. In addition to these ingredients, MonaVie Active lists d-glucosamine hydrochloride and esterified fatty acids as additives.

Monavie Pulse juice, launched on September 25, 2008, lists the following ingredients: blend of açai (freeze-dried powder, purée), reconstituted fruit juice blend (Concord grape blend, pineapple, apple, prickly pear, pomegranate, elderberry, yumberry, bilberry, blackberry, blueberry, cherry, cranberry, raspberry, aronia), puree fruit blend (acerola, strawberry, cupuaçu, camu camu), plant sterols (emulsified with corn syrup solids, polyglycerol esters of fatty acids, gum acacia), Apple Phyto-Phenolics (polyphenol blend), omega-3 (cranberry seed oil), resveratrol, natural flavors, potassium sorbate (preservative), sodium benzoate (preservative), citric acid. According to the company, 4 ounces of MonaVie Pulse provide 0.8 g plant sterols.

Product Research

Two studies published in the September 2008 edition of the Journal of Agriculture and Food Chemistry, reported findings that demonstrate the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory benefits of MonaVie Active in humans (in vivo).

The first study [Citation: http://www.aibmr.com/honzel.pdf] reports confirmation of the anti-inflammatory activity of the fruit, first reported in 2006, along with data of its antioxidant and immunomodulatory activity, based on a sequence of assays—ORAC, CAP-e, and ROS PMN—developed to measure such properties in complex natural foods using human cells. It is the first publication to show how these three industry-standard methods can be used in natural products research to bridge analytical and biological testing methods.

The second study [Citation: http://www.aibmr.com/jensen.pdf] reports on a study demonstrating that MonaVie Active raised antioxidant activity in serum, increased the levels of circulating antioxidant compounds in the serum, and inhibited lipid peroxidation of fats such as LDL-cholesterol, based on a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled, crossover study of healthy adults, ages 19 to 52. These findings suggest potential significant health benefits if demonstrated in longer term studies.

MORE Project

The company founded and operates a charitable organization known as The MORE Project or MonaVie's Operation Rescue.[1] based in South Jordan, Utah. The organization's director is Katy Holt-Larsen.

Criticism

Critics of MonaVie include physician Andrew Weil and nutritionist Jonny Bowden, who claim that MonaVie’s nutritional and health benefits are not proved and that the product is exorbitantly priced relative to more cost-effective conventional antioxidant-rich foods, such as blueberries.[2][3]

Bowden, Newsweek correspondent Tony Dokoupil,[4] and Palm Beach Post reporter Carolyn Susman[5] commented on the use of misleading promotional testimonials by MonaVie distributors in which the product was said to prevent and treat a variety of medical conditions. Dokoupil noted that “the FDA warned MonaVie about medicinal claims on its Web site” in reference to the Food and Drug Administration's action against MonaVie distributor Kevin Vokes in July 2007. According to the FDA's warning notice, Vokes had promoted MonaVie as a drug in violation of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act [21 U.S.C. § 321(g)(1)] by claiming that it was effective for treating inflammation, high cholesterol, and muscle and joint pain.[6] In a 2008 article in Forbes magazine, reporters Emily Lambert and Klaus Kneale described MonaVie as a pyramid scheme and noted that a MonaVie video testimonial by distributor Louis “Lou” B. Niles implied that the product could cure cancer.[7]

MonaVie CEO and founder Dallin Larsen was previously a senior executive with an MLM company that sold a similar juice product prior to being shut down by the FDA for illegal business practices. According to Newsweek correspondent Dokupil, Larsen, who was “a 20-year-veteran of the multi-level marketing industry", "left a senior post at another juice company in 2002, a year before the FDA destroyed the company's ‘bogus products’ that were being falsely promoted to treat ‘cancer, arthritis and attention deficit disorder’." The company in question, Dynamic Essentials, distributed an MLM juice product known as Royal Tongan Limu juice.

Litigation

On July 11, 2007, Monarch Health Sciences, the company that originally launched MonaVie, filed a lawsuit with the Utah district court against rival açaí juice manufacturer Amazon Thunder,[8] alleging that owner/founder Todd Reum had made “harmful, false, and defamatory statements" about Monavie which "purportedly injured Monarch’s reputation”.[9] The suit sought $75,000 in damages. On November 15, 2007, the Utah district court ruled to dismiss the case against Reum.

On March 17, 2008 MonaVie preemptively filed a lawsuit with the Utah district court asking for a ruling as to whether Quixtar Inc. and Amway Corp. had been over-reaching the boundaries of its non-compete agreements and address whether or not such agreements are enforceable for independent distributors.[10] On March 18, 2008, Quixtar North America filed a multi-count federal court complaint against the MonaVie company and 16 of its distributors (John Brigham Hart, Lita Hart, Jason Lyons, Carrie Lyons, Lou Niles, Farid Zarif, and 10 anonymous defendants) for unfair competition.[11] The complaint alleged that MonaVie competed unfairly by making false claims about its products.[12] On April 16, 2008 MonaVie filed to dismiss the Amway/Quixtar lawsuit.[citation needed]

On May 5, 2008, the MonaVie company, its board of directors, and several of its senior distributors were sued by Imagenetix, Inc. for $2.75 billion over trademark infringement arising from false claims that Monavie Active juice contained the ingredient Celadrin.[11][13] The case was settled out of court and the lawsuit was dropped on May 20, 2008.[14]

References

  1. ^ M.O.R.E. Project, retrieved July 28, 2008
  2. ^ Andrew Weil (2/8/2008). "Thumbs Down on MonaVie?". drweil.com. Retrieved 2008-08-24. {{cite news}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  3. ^ Johnny Bowden (June 11, 2008). "New Rules: No More Claiming Mona Vie Cures Cancer!". The Huffington Post. Retrieved 2008-08-24. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  4. ^ Tony Dokoupil (August 2, 2008). "A Drink's Purple Reign". Newsweek. Retrieved 2008-08-24. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  5. ^ Carolyn Susman (July 16, 2008). "On Health: FDA checks product claims on the Web". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved 2008-09-04. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |1= (help)
  6. ^ Jennifer A. Thomas (July 6, 2007). "FDA warning letter to MonaVie distributor Kevin A. Vokes" (PDF). FDA Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition Division of Enforcement. Retrieved 2008-08-24.
  7. ^ Emily Lambert and Klaus Kneale (August 11, 2008). "Climb to the Top". Forbes. Retrieved 2008-09-09.
  8. ^ United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Divison (July 11, 2007). "Monarch Health Sciences, Inc. vs. Amazon Thunder, Inc. et al". www. dockets.justia.com. Retrieved 2008-09-28.
  9. ^ United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Divison (November 15, 2007). "Monarch Health Sciences, Inc. vs. Amazon Thunder, Inc. and Todd Reum". Retrieved 2008-09-27.
  10. ^ "Monavie LLC vs. Quixtar, Inc./Amway Corp" (PDF). United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Divison. March 17, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-16.
  11. ^ a b Laura Hancock, "MonaVie Sued for 2.75B", Deseret News, May 16, 2008
  12. ^ "Quixtar Inc. Plaintiff, vs. MonaVie, Inc., MonaVie LLC, John Brigham and Lita Hart, Jason and Carrie Lyons, Lou Niles, Farid Zarif, John Does 1-10," (PDF). United States District Court for the District of Utah, Central Divison. March 18, 2008. Retrieved 2008-08-24.
  13. ^ "Imagenetix, Inc. vs. Monavie LLC et al" (PDF). United States District Court for the Southern District of California. May 05, 2008. Retrieved 2008-09-20. {{cite web}}: Check date values in: |date= (help)
  14. ^ "Trademark Suit Against MonaVie Dropped", May 20, 2008

Further reading

External links

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=MonaVie&oldid=244435234"