Tuesday, June 19, 2012

Oops She's Done It Again: MonaVie Juice Scam Hits Sydney

My mum bought bottles and bottles of the 'miracle' health fruit juice. $960 worth of fruit juice, packaged into 24 small bottles. After attending a packed seminar, she's convinced by the spruiker that this miracle juice is the real deal.

They've done a really good sales job on her by convincing her that it's nutricious and will cure any medical issues that she has.
"The MonaVie premier juice blends contain powerful nutrients that aid your body in the fight against aging and other symptoms of oxidative stress. In fact, just four ounces provide you with the antioxidant capacity of approximately 12-14 servings of common fruits and vegetables." From their site.
Four ounces is equivalent to half a cup. This may mislead people into thinking that half a cup of fruit juice has the health equivalent of 12-14 servings of fruit and vegetables. What about the lack of dietary fibre? What about the nutrients lost in processing? What about the additives and preservatives in the MonaVie fruit juice? If you're simply chasing antioxidants then you'd be better off eating fresh punnets of blueberries, cranberries, strawberries, kidney beans and prunes and they're vastly cheaper by comparison.

They call it 'relationship marketing' but dissect it to the bone and call it for what it is- multi level marketing and pyramid scheme marketing. Where the more people you recruit for selling their products, the more you will make.

Miracle Cures Simply Don't Exist

There are no miracle cures. No miracle anything. No miracle food, no miracle spa, no mirracle mud or food or juice or plant.

After my friend lost two Aunties to cancer in 2011, my faith in 'miracles' is nonexistent. Money was no problem so they have tried everything under the sun: the all-vegetables-and-fruit diet, the raw veggie diet, the EXTREMELY expensive mangosteen juice cure at $70(?) per bottle, the $15k cancer clinics in Germany plus the bottles and bottles of pills and vitamins found on the internet.

There are no miracle cure for any human disease. There are doctors working tirelessly to treat cancer and that's all that I'm left to believe in after witnessing cancer destroying the body while the assortment of 'miracle' juices, food, pills and diet did nothing to stop the inevitable ravaging effects of cancer.

MonaVie Juice Scam And Lack of Healing Evidence

When I first read about the MonaVie juice miracle-cure-all* scam at Budgetsaresexy.com I thought, 'yeah yeah, another scam...what's new?!'.

Until it hit the shores of Australia and makes the round in Sydney.

And then my own mum goes and buys 24 bottles of the stuff at $40 PER BOTTLE! You read it right...$40 for one bottle of fruit juice!

Forget about snake oil salesman, moving right along to the modern day snake juice salesman.
She is adamant that it is an amazing juice with amazing health properties because that is what she has been told at their seminars. That the juice was formulated by a doctor and the doctor who apparently formulated the juice was at the presentation. If it's formulated by a doctor, it's gotta have medicinal benefits right? Unfortunately not.

After all that I've written about scams and attempts to expose scams, it happens right in our own backyard. The irony.

Now I'm more concerned about my own mother ripping off her friends under the disillusion that the miracle juice has amazing health properties and that months later down the track, they'll all be angry, resentful and upset with her. (Like other victims around the world getting upset).

To prevent this from happening, I told her that if she must spruik the product(because she's been convinced at the seminar), don't sell it to them. Just tell them to go directly to the vendor and make up their own mind about whether they wish to try or not. When one makes a conscious decision to buy themselves, then when(there's no question of 'if') the dominos collapse, they made the call.

If you can't avoid the loss, at least try and minimise the loss and the fallout right?! Crikeys.

Maybe companies should be signing up to the MonaVie sales technique course in how to sell products.

With MonaVie's sales skills, they could sell sunshine to those living in the dessert and ice to the eskimos/Inuits.

Further Reading:

1. http://www.lazymanandmoney.com/monavie-scam/
2. *http://www.budgetsaresexy.com/2010/09/is-monavie-juice-a-scam/
3. http://www.juicescam.com/

19 comments:

  1. For anyone reading about Mona Vie Juice- I would like to edit to say that although it doesn't cure cancer or have 'miracle'effects, the drinkers of the juice/product have reported that during the duration that they drank the juice, they felt a lot healthier.

    I'm not sure if that's a placebo effect or not but I am always trying to be as objective as possible on this blog so I felt that I need to mention that. Most of them that have drank the juice have stopped now because it's simply too expensive for them...but they have felt better for the duration that they drank the product.

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    1. You're not being objective and yes, it's a placebo.

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    2. How am I not being objective? And yes, it is a placebo. Thus far, it has not cured any illness yet in those that I know who has consumed the products and it has been one year since now.

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    3. Technically the reason why it isn't particularly objective is because although you have objectively stated that the drinkers of the juice have "felt a lot healthier", the people themselves who have reported it may simply be biased as they may have felt it psychologically (personally if I was paying that much, I'd tell everyone that it was good) or other external reasons. Of course he isn't saying your not being objective, but the statement itself has some holes.

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    4. Hi Anonymous...basically you're saying in response to my reply, that I was being only partially objective and not fully objective. The first anonymous poster didn't even acknowledge that I was being objective to any extent. Simply, "You're not being objective". Who knows how biased the drinkers of the products are. I get plenty of spam by the ppl who drink and endorse the products. I don't publish their comments because if it's simply an angry rant, it's a waste of my readers time. If anyone writes an objective comment, then I will bother to post it. Just like your comment.

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  2. I am always very cautions to believe the opinions of people who has no personal experience of the subject. Mona Vie juice is one of the best on the market. It has a strong scientific backing, and
    27 published scientific researches. It worked for me and my family to restore our health. I know the
    great results of this product might effect financially some practitioners, who for example are selling vitamins and other herbal products, but it is a fact that the body can absorb nutrients in liquid form more completely than in tablets or capsule forms. And is it expensive? I don't think so. People don't think twice to pay for cigarettes or alcohol much more. It depends of your priority. And as for the "fresh" fruits, did you know the truth about the real nutritional value of the fruits on the market? Alas the modern farming technology robbed the fruits and vegetables of their nutrients. It is a fact too. So please put together your facts before you express your anger about a product you have not enough knowledge to judge.

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    1. Hi there, are you a seller of the product yourself? Have you got your own self interest vested into the product?

      I don't sell the product so there is no vested self interest nor conflict of interest on my behalf.

      Here's my proposition to you to think about who would live longer on the two diets below??
      a) A person who drinks only mona vie juice versus
      b) A person whose diet is only fresh fruit and vegetables

      Regarding your comment, whether a product is considered expensive or not is a matter of perspective and depends on people's own financial situation. Spending $70 on a small bottle of fruit juice IMO is expensive and if it isn't expensive to you then go for it.

      I'm not angry about the mona vie products. I am simply expressing my opinion based on my own research and experience of family friends close to me who have consumed the mona vie products.

      As for your own quote: "And as for the "fresh" fruits, did you know the truth about the real nutritional value of the fruits on the market? Alas the modern farming technology robbed the fruits and vegetables of their nutrients. It is a fact too."

      Perhaps you should do your own research by physically visiting actual farms to see their farming practice before blatantly giving me a blanket statement that fruits and vegetables have been robbed of their nutrients. There are undoubtedly dubious farming practices out there AND good farming practices out there. Both sides of the coin.

      Seek out suppliers, producers and growers of fruit and vegetables who don't grow GM products, who are local growers so that your fresh produce has only had to travel a short distance to reach your shelves. These have higher nutritional content than produce that have been imported from foreign nations and have been kept in storage for longer periods of time and have potentially been gassed to extend their longevity.

      Fresh, locally grown produce is much more likely to have a higher nutritional content than a bottle of mona vie, processed, fruit juice(which highly likely contains additives to maintain shelf life and durability) and if you wish to believe otherwise, then that's up to you. By choosing not to consume fresh fruit and produce, you are missing out on fibre, nutrients and antioxidents etc. Again, that is up to you.

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  3. If I was not already a distributor I would tend to believe your comments too about the high price of Monavie and other comments but I believie there is nothing that compares to MOnavie and the benefits of their products. I have tried all of them and have found them to be effective in that I can see how my skin's clarity has improved and I am in better health. The benefits can show up in many ways even though they may not be so obvious, but a blood test or any other medical test may testify to this. We tend to forget how we were before we started driniking the product and may not notice the changes so much, especially if you are young and never get sick.
    If the products are improving people's health and wellbeing it can hardly be called a scam.

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  4. just wanted to say that i've drank it for a month and my digestive system has been much better. i've had really bad digestive system since i was 10 and my dad has been trying many different medicine because he has lost so much weight past three years from nt being able to digest food properly. Monavie has helped us a lot and my brother from his eczema. maybe there are no obvious effects for you guys. but i defs say it has been extremely good for our family :) just wanted to share my thoughts!

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  5. Hi I'm over 60 and have been drinking Monavie for two years Very happy with the results.

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    1. I note that you posted on 31/12/13 stating that you're a distributor...just putting it out there for other readers researching the product. The product probably contains vitamins but it's not a miracle juice and won't cure cancer or any terminal illnesses.

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    2. Boy, Leakkhena, what a closed, and uneducated mind on health and costs of today’s merchandise. Have you ever had a good bottle of wine -- or two? What was the cost of your night out? How many fruits and vegetables do you eat EVERY day? Monavie supplies nutrients often missing out in many diets. Monavie doesn't guarantee miracles. As for cancer -- the modern medical treatments leave a lot to be desired -- Over the years I have had five family and extended members die with modern cancer treatments -- there is nothing wrong with trying some healthy alternatives -- you are going to die anyway!! Monavie is easily accessible -- not having to go out, locate and buy those food products you mention, and then prepare them. Why do you object to people making a little money -- would you expect a SHOP owner to sell his merchandise at cost price ?!?. You show how little you know when you call it a Pyramid scheme -- please do your home work -- you might just learn something instead of shooting off at the mouth. As for you saying they are SMALL bottles -- since when is 750 mls considered a small bottle ? Get your facts right !! I am not a provider, however I use the product, and it gives me and my family and friends great health benefits, too many to mention here. Your mother is a lot smarter than you in this -- perhaps you should learn from her while she is still here. Donna U.

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    3. I published your comment Donna so that I could write a reply to you. This is rhetorical, but why are Mona Vie distributors and some of their product drinkers so vicious? No, I've never had a bottle of wine or two. What's your point? I simply wrote that I prefer fresh fruit and vegetables compared to a processed drink. A processed juice has its place but not in replacement of the fresh alternatives. They need to control their distributors more tightly...some distributors were claiming that it cures cancer. Ridiculous. I get a lot of spam from angry distributors claiming this and that but anything that can mislead my readers, I either don't publish or I will publish and write a comment. "Monavie is easily accessible -- not having to go out, locate and buy those food products you mention, and then prepare them" ...sure if you want to sacrifice fresh food for a bottle of juice, go for it.

      Mona Vie processed juice products are unlikely to be more nutricious than the fresh fruit and veg. I don't care if they're making a lot of money or not, just don't make false proclaimations about the products and give the distributors training lessons so that they don't go out there making false claims too about the 'miracle' juice. I actually spent several hours researching Mona Vie before publishing my article, so I wouldn't consider this article as 'shooting off at the mouth'.

      Calm down and have a cup of tea (or mona vie juice seeing that's your thing).

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  6. I was a distributor under one of the larger Australian diamonds in Sydney. My turn off for Monavie was that it was treated as a money making business by my uplines to increase rank of those who got in the business earlier. Even creating fictitious Chinese persons as downline in my business. All they cared about was rank and the free trips and gifts.As for its nutritional value it is high in antioxidants so that was the only plus.
    AJ

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    1. Still sounds like a pyramid scheme. Most businesses are driven by sales. It doesn't surprise me that they created fictitious down lines to improve their performance. At $40 for a small bottle...eating fresh fruit and veg provides fibre, nutrients and antioxidents at cheap prices compared to drinking the Mona Vie equivalent of fruit juice which is lacking fibre and is expensive.

      I'm not involved at all with Mova Vie.

      Anyone who visits my site and wishes to spend their money on the product, go for it. Don't let me deter you. Unsure if it will benefit you personally or not? Go buy it. Got a lot of money you can splash and throw around? Go buy it.

      Just don't believe the sales people when they say it will cure cancer. It doesn't. It's been three years since I have written this post. My attitude now is, if you have read my article and still want to try the product and believe it will benefit you, just go buy it and try it.

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  7. Hi,
    I'm looking at Monavie and wanted to get a follow up on your mum's use of the juice? You stated that she bought a 24 bottle supply in 2012 and what has happened since?

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    1. She didn't buy any more. Sorry I can't help you with the outcome or verdict of the benefits of using the products from a personal perspective.

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