Online food retailers were caught in large numbers for advertising their products as if they were effective for weight loss, touting them as "oral Wegovy," "natural Mounjaro," and more. Some were found to have lured consumers with AI-generated fake expert videos and images of famous entertainers.
The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety said on the 23rd that, amid growing summer demand for diet foods, it conducted a focused inspection of diet-labeled foods sold online and found 26 companies in violation of labeling and advertising law, requesting administrative action by local governments and filing criminal complaints.
The companies caught was found to have promoted ordinary foods as if they were effective for disease prevention, treatment, or weight loss, or in ways that could be mistaken for drugs or health functional foods. The products they sold totaled about 600,000 units, with sales of about 11.5 billion won.
Ads related to the "ole shot," which recently trended on social media (SNS), were also included in large numbers. The ole shot is a method of consuming olive oil with lemon juice. Some companies sold olive oil or products mixing olive oil and lemon juice while advertising them as effective not only for weight loss but also for "detox," "slow aging," "antioxidation," and "anti-inflammation."
Ads that evoked the obesity treatments Wegovy and Mounjaro were also uncovered. Some companies listed only part of the drug names in product ads, such as "WeOvy" or "MounOO," or used the term "GLP-1," leading consumers to perceive ordinary foods as if they were drugs.
Cases were also found that used videos in which famous entertainers or pharmacists recommend products, AI-generated virtual figures, and images of fat and blood vessels. They used phrases such as "appetite suppression," "blocking fat absorption," and "expelling body fat," advertising them as if they had drug-level efficacy.
These ads were run by repeatedly exposing short-form videos on algorithm-based SNS such as Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, then linking to their own online malls. The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety said it also found cases in which some companies used phrases such as "rapid loss in a short period" and "fat is expelled" in short-form videos but deleted or toned down those claims on the linked sales pages to evade enforcement.
The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety believes the approach exploited the fact that SNS short-form ads are repeatedly exposed for a short time and then deleted, or that it is hard to verify the actual advertiser. While online sales pages are subject to ongoing monitoring, short-form ads are relatively difficult to track.
The inspection also uncovered cases where selling prices were up to 27.5 times higher than purchase prices. One product with a purchase price of about 2,000 won was sold for 60,000 won.
The Ministery of Food and Drug Safety urged consumers not to be misled by ads that claim drug-level efficacy, such as "oral Wegovy," "appetite suppressant," "fat expulsion agent," and "short-term weight loss." It said it will continue to strengthen inspections of new advertising tactics that use SNS short-form videos and AI-generated content.