MRTP orders withdrawal of misleading 'Sundrop Heart' ad

New Delhi: The Monopolies and Restrictive Trade Practices Commission (MRTP) has found a television advertisement of Sundrop Heart oil, a brand of the Rs 1,000 crore turnover Agro Tech Foods, misleading and detrimental to the health of consumers and has ordered it to be withdrawn.

This comes after a Mumbai-based cardiologist complained against the advertisement and the firm manufacturing and selling the product.

The Hyderabad-based Agro Tech Foods launched the Sundrop Heart variant of its Sundrop edible oil last year. The company claims Sundrop Heart to be a scientific blend of high quality, specially processed blend of refined rice bran oil and sunflower oil. The company says the oil has a good balance of MUFA and PUFA and Oryzanol, which is known to reduce cholesterol.

Edible oil companies turned aggressive advertisers in 2003 and 2004. The biggest advertiser was the Gujarat-based Adani Wilmar for its 'Fortune' brand of refined oil followed by Kaleeshwari for 'Gold Winner' sunflower oil. Agro Tech was in third position with 'Sundrop Heart.'

Agro Tech Foods is a 51 per cent subsidiary of US-based ConAgra and was earlier known as ITC Agro Tech. ConAgra is among the largest foods company in the world with revenues of $25 billion and operations in 35 countries.

ConAgra is present in the total food chain from agriculture to processed and ready to eat foods with a product portfolio of more than 80 brands. Agro Tech Foods derived 60 per cent of its Rs1,000 crore turnover in fiscal 2004 from the sale of edible oil in bulk form.

Agro Tech Foods declared revenues of Rs 326 crore with a profit after tax of Rs 2.5 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2004 against a turnover of Rs 272 crore and profit of Rs 1.6 crore in the corresponding period a year ago.