National Advertising Review Board Finds Glad ForceFlex MaxStrength Trash Bag '25% More Durable' Claims on Packaging Not Misleading

New York, NY – May 23, 2024 – A panel of the National Advertising Review Board (NARB), the appellate advertising body of BBB National Programs, determined (one panelist dissenting) that The Glad Products Company’s “25% more durable” claim for Glad ForceFlex MaxStrength bags, as it appears on the packaging of 45- 34- and 20-bag sizes, is not misleading.

In the underlying National Advertising Division (NAD) challenge (Case No. 7309), Reynolds Consumer Products LLC argued that because Glad’s disclosures concerning the nature of the comparison were not clear and conspicuous, the “25% more durable” claim misleads consumers into interpreting the message as a claim of superiority compared to competing brands of tall kitchen bags.
 

NAD recommended that Glad modify the claim to include clear and conspicuous disclosures indicating the object of comparison is Glad’s own 13-gallon ForceFlex bags. Glad accepted the decision for its search ads and website, however, appealed NAD’s recommendation that it modify its “25% more durable claim” on certain packaging.
 

Regarding the Glad ForceFlex MaxStrength packaging, the NARB panel majority came to a different conclusion from NAD. Two of the three panelists found that, in the context of the three packaging samples provided to the panelists (45- 34 and 20-bag sizes), Glad’s “25% more durable” claim is not misleading. All three panelists agreed that its conclusions are limited to the examined packaging and are not a comment on the more durable claim as it may be presented in other forms of advertising. 
 

Glad stated that it is “very pleased with NARB’s conclusion that its ‘25% More Durable*’ claim is not misleading as presented on its product packaging.”
 

All BBB National Programs case decision summaries can be found in the case decision library. For the full text of NAD, NARB, and CARU decisions, subscribe to the online archive. This press release shall not be used for advertising or promotional purposes.