Zinzino, the Swedish direct-selling company behind the BalanceOil supplement line, has not been the subject of a single defining lawsuit. Its legal record is a series of smaller matters: a California Proposition 65 settlement over lead in dietary supplements, three self-regulatory inquiries in the United States into distributor claims about earnings and health, and, most seriously, recent enforcement actions by Swedish and Norwegian authorities over misleading medical marketing.
The California Proposition 65 Case
The one conventional lawsuit against Zinzino was filed in Alameda County Superior Court by Environmental Research Center, Inc. The plaintiff alleged that dietary supplements sold by Zinzino, LLC and its Swedish parent Zinzino AB exposed California consumers to lead without the warnings required by Proposition 65.1California Attorney General. Proposition 65 – 60-Day Notice 2020-00873 A 60-day notice went out in February 2020, and the civil complaint followed that September.2California Attorney General. Proposition 65 – 60-Day Notice 2020-00274
The parties settled in November 2020, with judgment entered in February 2021. Zinzino was permanently barred from selling covered products in California that expose a person to more than 0.5 micrograms of lead per day unless the products carry compliant Proposition 65 warnings. The money side was small: a $4,000 civil penalty, $22,203 in attorney’s fees and costs, and $6,297 in additional reimbursements, totaling $32,500.1California Attorney General. Proposition 65 – 60-Day Notice 2020-00873
Swedish and Norwegian Enforcement in 2025 and 2026
The most significant pressure on Zinzino now comes from its home region. In August 2025, an agency identified as the Environmental Administration found that several product descriptions for Zinzino’s ZinoBiotic+ supplement contained unauthorized health claims. CEO Dag Bergheim Pettersen said the company had revised the descriptions in consultation with the authority, though it faced potential legal proceedings and fines.3MarketScreener. Zinzino Faces Regulatory Criticism for Misleading Marketing Practices
Harder action followed in March 2026. In Sweden, Konsumentverket (the Swedish Consumer Agency) banned specific marketing claims about Zinzino’s Viva+ saffron supplement and BalanceOil+. The agency found that promoters were marketing the saffron supplement as a replacement for antidepressants and claiming BalanceOil+ helped with pregnancy, without scientific evidence. The agency rejected Zinzino’s argument that it bore no responsibility for what its independent partners said, ruling instead that the company is “primarily responsible” for how its products are promoted. Each future violation can trigger a fine of 1.5 million SEK, roughly $160,000.4BehindMLM. Sweden, Norway Target Zinzino Illegal Medical Claims
The Swedish ruling matters beyond its immediate cost. It squarely rejects the defense direct-selling companies routinely raise when their distributors overpromise: that the corporate entity cannot control independent contractors. Konsumentverket held that Zinzino itself is on the hook for that marketing.
In Norway, Mattilsynet (the Norwegian Food Safety Authority) inspected Zinzino in March 2026 and found multiple violations of marketing regulations. The authority called the company’s promotional materials “misleading and likely to create fear,” noting that they implied BalanceOil+ could improve, prevent, or relieve pain and illness, and criticized Zinzino for suggesting a varied diet does not provide sufficient nutrition. Zinzino challenged the citations and lost. It has been ordered to correct the deceptive marketing on its website by August 17, 2026.4BehindMLM. Sweden, Norway Target Zinzino Illegal Medical Claims
Self-Regulatory Inquiries Into Distributor Claims
In the United States, Zinzino has been the subject of three inquiries by the Direct Selling Self-Regulatory Council (DSSRC), a program of BBB National Programs. These are self-regulatory reviews rather than lawsuits, but they document a repeated pattern in how the company’s independent salesforce promotes the business.
2021: COVID-19 and Earnings Claims
In June 2021, the DSSRC closed an inquiry into social media posts by Zinzino distributors marketing the BalanceOil product as a “COVID-19 Solution” and claiming it offered “CORONA VIRUS PROTECTION” by reducing cellular inflammation. The DSSRC found no testing data supporting any claim that Zinzino products could treat or prevent COVID-19.5BBB National Programs. Case 38-2021 Monitoring Inquiry – Zinzino, LLC It also flagged earnings language on the company’s website describing the opportunity as “full-time self-employment with minimal risk” and inviting people to take “the first step towards health and wealth.”6BBB National Programs. DSSRC Case 38-2021 Decision
Zinzino agreed to follow the recommendations and said it was revising the website and contacting the responsible salesforce members. The DSSRC called Zinzino’s initial removal efforts “insufficient” and told it to send direct takedown notices or use platform reporting tools when distributors did not comply.
2025: Financial Freedom and Product Efficacy Claims
A second inquiry, closed in February 2025, flagged 12 social media posts by Zinzino salesforce members promising things like “$10,000 a mo,” a $1,150 monthly car allowance, “financial freedom,” and a “laptop lifestyle.” Three further posts made health claims, including a “100% success rate when it comes to people’s health” and assertions that products could “lower bad cholesterol” and “improve brain function.”7BBB National Programs. Case 196-2025 Monitoring Inquiry – Zinzino, LLC
Zinzino did not provide evidence to substantiate any of the flagged claims. It contacted the distributors, removed 14 posts, and modified one more. The DSSRC found those actions “necessary and appropriate” and closed the case, noting that Zinzino planned to launch an updated Marketing Rules and Ethics Policy in mid-2025.7BBB National Programs. Case 196-2025 Monitoring Inquiry – Zinzino, LLC
2025: Inherited Valentus Claims
The third inquiry followed Zinzino’s April 2025 acquisition of the assets of Valentus Global, Inc., a defunct direct-selling company. For roughly SEK 20 million, Zinzino bought Valentus’s distributor database, customer records, product inventory, and intellectual property.8PR Newswire. Zinzino Acquires Valentus Global to Increase Distribution Power in Europe Along with them came a trail of social media posts from former Valentus distributors promising “financial freedom,” “unlimited earning potential,” and the chance to quit a day job.
The DSSRC reviewed 13 such posts and said terms like “unlimited earning potential” are “inherently problematic” without data showing that typical participants actually achieve those results. Zinzino removed or modified 10 of the 13 posts. For the remaining three, written by inactive former Valentus members who never joined Zinzino, the company filed formal takedown requests with Meta. The DSSRC found a “sincere commitment to compliance” and closed the case in July 2025, recommending Zinzino consider posting public comments on the unauthorized posts to clarify they were not authorized.9BBB National Programs. DSSRC Case 225-2025 – Zinzino
TINA.org Investigation
Separately from the DSSRC, the consumer watchdog Truth in Advertising (TINA.org) investigated Zinzino between 2017 and 2018 as part of a broader review of Direct Selling Association member companies. TINA.org identified what it called “false and unsubstantiated income claims” used by Zinzino and its distributors to promote the opportunity, and it notified the company. The group maintains databases of both income and health claims associated with Zinzino.10Truth in Advertising. Zinzino Income Claims Database A follow-up audit in September 2018 found some flagged URLs had been removed. TINA.org did not report any legal proceedings or regulatory sanctions resulting from its investigation.11Truth in Advertising. Zinzino Brand Page
Where Things Stand
The California Proposition 65 case is closed. All three DSSRC inquiries are closed. The live front is Scandinavia: an August 17, 2026 deadline to correct Zinzino’s Norwegian marketing, and a Swedish decision that keeps per-violation fines of roughly $160,000 on the table while placing responsibility for distributor marketing on the company itself.