Controversies
Controversies tied to this brand in public sources. A listing is not a finding of fault.
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2019
Herbalife to pay $20 million to settle SEC charges over China business statements
Settlement
Herbalife agreed to pay $20 million to settle Securities and Exchange Commission charges that it made false and misleading statements about its China business model in regulatory filings over a six-year period. The settlement resolves the SEC's allegations concerning the company's statements about its China business. The event was reported on September 30, 2019.
Source excerpt
According to the SEC’s order, Herbalife, from 2012 through 2018, led investors to believe its compensation model in China differed from that used in other countries, which was untrue.
Dietary supplement maker Herbalife will pay $20 million to settle charges with the Securities and Exchange Commission that it made false and misleading statements about its China business model in regulatory filings over a six-year period.
2016
Federal Trade Commission business-practices settlement
The FTC alleged that Herbalife misled consumers about the income they could expect from becoming distributors and that the compensation system rewarded recruitment rather than genuine retail demand. Herbalife agreed to pay $200 million and restructure its United States operations, including sales verification, distributor classifications and reward rules. The settlement required outside compliance monitoring but did not formally determine that Herbalife was an illegal pyramid scheme.
2008
Lead-content litigation and scrutiny
Herbalife faced a lawsuit after laboratory testing was reported to show elevated lead levels in some products under California standards. The company commissioned separate testing and stated that the products did not contain lead at levels requiring special labeling.
2004
Reports concerning liver injury
Health authorities and researchers in several countries investigated reports of liver injury among people who had consumed Herbalife products. Scientific and governmental assessments did not agree uniformly: some reports suggested an association, while later reviews found limited or inconsistent evidence of causality. Herbalife disputed that its products caused the reported conditions.