The Hong Kong-based manufacturer is taking the two companies to federal district court in the Northern District of Illinois on allegations of false advertising, false comparative advertising, unfair competition, defamation, interference with contractual relations, copyright infringement and unjust enrichment.
Gencor is asserting its intellectual property to prevent any piggy-backing of the research and development that has surrounded its products.
The company has a patented process for extracting essential compounds of whole herbs without chemical alteration to the active compounds, thereby promising that full benefits are delivered in the extract.
With North American headquarters in Austin, Texas, Gencor provides herb and herbal extracts countries. The company has conducted research and published studies on the effectiveness and safety of Caralluma fimbriata extract and alleges that, in their sale of non-extract powder product, Federal Labs and Nature's Thyme each use Gencor's Caralluma extract studies and reports.
Gencor's patented appetite suppressant product, Slimaluma is an extract of Caralluma Fimbriata.
"Using Gencor's studies in connection with Federal Lab's and Nature's Thyme's byproducts is like using studies on apples to make health claims about oranges," said Gencor's legal representative, Rakesh Amin.
