Vietnam jails former beauty queen and two influencers over false fiber gummy claims

Two years in prison for a promise about vegetables

Former Miss Grand International winner Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien has been sentenced to two years in prison in Vietnam for deceiving consumers through false claims about Kera Supergreens Gummies. The product was promoted as a convenient source of dietary fiber, with a message that each gummy offered the equivalent of a plate of vegetables.

Tests found about 0.935 percent fiber by weight and more than 30 percent sorbitol, a sweetener often used in laxatives. Judges found that Tien knew the product contained very little fiber while promoting it to her large social media audience.

Two fellow influencers, Pham Quang Linh and Hang Du Muc, received the same prison term. Investigators said their joint business sold more than 129,000 packs to over 56,000 customers, bringing in more than $650,000 in revenue and roughly $473,000 in profit.

The case connects three parts of the same sales campaign: what the influencers told shoppers, what the gummies actually contained, and the money earned from the difference between the two. It also shows how a celebrity endorsement can become a matter of criminal responsibility when a promoter knows a product's composition and repeats false claims about it.

By November 19, 2025, the scandal had moved from consumer testing and public apologies to prison sentences. Authorities had halted sales, investigated the businesses behind the gummies, and classified the product as counterfeit because its packaging omitted information about its fiber content and high sorbitol level.

What the judges found

The case file described a venture jointly owned by Tien and a company created by Pham and Hang. Tien held a 30 percent stake and featured Kera Supergreens Gummies heavily on her social media pages. Officials also described her financial interest as a 30 percent share of the venture's profit.

The court ruled that all three defendants knew the true composition of the gummies and understood the nature of the claims they repeated to the public. Their role therefore extended beyond putting a familiar face beside a product: they were involved in the business selling it.

The judicial panel, explaining why prison terms were necessary, pointed to the defendants' intent and the amount of money involved:

They committed the offense intentionally and gained a large illicit profit, so strict punishment is necessary.

The court also described the gummies as counterfeit because the packaging failed to disclose the actual fiber content and the high proportion of sorbitol. Both were essential to truthful labeling under Vietnamese rules. The findings brought the product's labeling, its promotion and the defendants' knowledge into the same case.

How much fiber was actually inside?

Kera Supergreens Gummies were marketed with sweeping health claims. Promotional posts suggested that they were suitable for all ages, while the central sales message presented a single piece as the equivalent of a plate of vegetables. The label itself did not list the fiber content.

A consumer commissioned independent laboratory tests after buying the product. Those results, followed by official analysis, found only a fraction of the promised fiber. One laboratory measured roughly 16 milligrams per gummy, compared with the claimed 200 milligrams.

That comparison gives the gap a simple scale: 16 milligrams is about 8 percent of 200 milligrams. In other words, the laboratory measured roughly one thirteenth of the amount claimed. The difference was substantial even before considering the broader promise about replacing a plate of vegetables.

Investigators later quantified the fiber at around 0.935 percent of the product's weight, or about half a gram in a box containing 30 pieces. The laboratory result of 16 milligrams per piece would put 30 gummies at about 480 milligrams, close to the same half gram total.

Adults are advised to consume about 25 to 38 grams of fiber each day, depending on age and sex. Against that range, half a gram represents about 1.3 to 2 percent of a day's recommended intake. A gummy containing 16 milligrams contributes almost nothing to that target.

Why sorbitol matters

Dietary fiber consists of carbohydrates from plants that the body cannot digest. It helps regulate digestion, feeds bacteria in the gut, supports steadier blood sugar and contributes to the feeling of fullness after eating. Those benefits explain why a promise about fiber can appeal to shoppers looking for an easy way to improve their diet.

Sorbitol works differently. It is a sugar alcohol that tastes sweet but is poorly absorbed in the small intestine. In high amounts, it draws water into the colon and speeds bowel movements. That action explains its use in laxatives.

The gummies contained more than 30 percent sorbitol, yet their packaging did not warn buyers about that high proportion. They also contained undisclosed additives. A fast digestive effect from sorbitol could be mistaken for the benefit of fiber, even though sorbitol is not a substitute for dietary fiber.

Sorbitol can cause bloating, cramping and diarrhea in sensitive people. It should be used with care, especially by children and people with digestive disorders. That concern sits alongside the campaign's suggestion that the gummies were suitable for all ages: shoppers needed accurate ingredient information to understand what they were consuming.

From a December campaign to arrests

The promotional push began in December 2024, with coordinated posts across social media accounts that had large audiences. The campaign gave the gummies repeated exposure and tied the product to the public profiles of its promoters.

A buyer then sent the product for laboratory testing. Results contradicting the advertising claims spread online, prompting authorities to examine the supply chain, the ownership of the business and the messages used to attract customers.

Investigators highlighted the short promotional line that helped drive sales:

One gummy equals a plate of vegetables.

The phrase compressed a broad nutrition promise into a few words. Once laboratory measurements became public, the same phrase offered consumers a straightforward way to understand the gap between the advertisement and the product.

• December 2024: Coordinated social media promotion of Kera Supergreens Gummies began.
• March 2025: The influencers issued public apologies and paid fines for deceptive advertising and disclosure violations.
• April 2025: Police arrested Pham, Hang and executives connected to the company and manufacturer on charges related to counterfeit goods and consumer deception.
• May 2025: Officers took Tien into custody as part of the same case.
• By November 19, 2025: Tien, Pham and Hang had each received a prison sentence of two years.

Sales were halted during the scandal. The Ho Chi Minh City food safety authority classified the gummies as counterfeit because the packaging omitted fiber content and failed to disclose the high sorbitol level. No appeal timetable or further hearing date was given.

The businesses behind the promotion

The Ministry of Public Security led the criminal investigation. Investigators traced how the gummies were sourced, produced and sold, including the use of substandard vegetable powder and the undeclared addition of sorbitol and other additives.

Tien's 30 percent stake and profit share made her financial involvement a central part of the case. Pham and Hang were linked to the venture through the company they had created. The investigation also reached executives associated with the company and the manufacturer.

Police were examining more than the words used in advertisements. The inquiry followed the product from its ingredients to its packaging and then to the social media messages that persuaded people to buy it. Each stage affected what customers were told about the gummies.

The earlier administrative penalties addressed advertising and disclosure. Tien was fined 25 million Vietnamese dong for failing to disclose that her posts were paid promotions. Pham and Hang were fined 140 million dong each for deceptive advertising. The later criminal case concerned counterfeit goods and consumer deception.

The sales figures and the money earned

Court documents stated that more than 129,000 packs were sold to over 56,000 customers, generating more than $650,000 in revenue. Investigators put the three influencers' profit at roughly $473,000.

Revenue is the money received from sales. Profit is what remains after costs. Keeping the two figures separate helps explain why the court referred to a large illicit profit rather than simply the total amount shoppers spent.

Early tallies during the investigation cited more than 135,000 units sold to more than 30,000 buyers. Those figures differ from the later court totals of more than 129,000 packs and over 56,000 customers. The difference likely reflects counting methods for boxes and individual packs, although the reason was not confirmed.

Whichever tally is used, the campaign reached tens of thousands of buyers and sold well over 100,000 units or packs. Its scale made it one of Vietnam's most prominent consumer fraud cases linked to social media promotion in 2025.

How Tien's public profile supported the campaign

Tien became internationally known after winning Miss Grand International in Bangkok in 2021. She subsequently became a familiar face on television and a regular partner for brands, giving her a public platform that extended beyond beauty pageants.

She received a certificate of merit from the prime minister and was named a Friend of the House by Dior in March 2025. Those milestones formed part of the public profile she brought to the gummy campaign.

Tien's visibility and the trust attached to her image helped the promotion reach large audiences quickly. For a shopper scrolling through social media, a familiar celebrity could make an unfamiliar food product appear credible.

The court's findings focused on her knowledge and involvement in the venture. Her fame explains the campaign's reach; her ownership interest and awareness of the product's composition explain why the case concerned her conduct as a business participant as well as a promoter.

What Vietnam's consumer rules require

Vietnam requires truthful labeling for food and supplements. Authorities can classify a product as counterfeit when its claims and composition do not match its approved declarations. A product declaration is the recorded information about what a product is and what it contains.

Health related advertising must avoid unverified claims and must not suggest that a product can replace a balanced diet. The promise that a gummy could equal a plate of vegetables brought a simple dietary comparison into a sales pitch, while testing found very little of the fiber being promoted.

Paid promotion also carries a disclosure requirement. Tien's fine for failing to identify her posts as paid advertisements addressed whether viewers were told about the commercial arrangement. The deceptive advertising fines imposed on Pham and Hang addressed the claims made to consumers.

The prison sentences followed findings that the defendants knowingly deceived customers. Together with the labeling decisions and earlier fines, the case reflects stronger enforcement of influencer marketing and supplement rules in Vietnam.

Checks for influencers and brands

The Kera case shows why a food promotion needs checks that reach beyond a supplier's sales pitch. A campaign can spread faster than the paperwork behind it, yet the composition, registered information and advertising claims still need to agree.

Influencers and brands involved in food or supplement promotions can use the following checks to keep their claims tied to the product being sold:

• Verify the formulation through accredited laboratory tests before a campaign, and repeat testing for each batch.
• Read the approved product declaration and packaging, and make sure every claim matches the registered information.
• Avoid sweeping health claims such as the promise that one gummy equals a plate of vegetables.
• Disclose paid promotions plainly in every post and video.
• Keep contracts, test reports and supplier certificates on file, and audit business partners.
• Prepare a recall and refund plan in case problems arise.

Batch testing matters because the product customers receive must match the information used to promote it. Clear records and checks on partners also help connect a finished product to its ingredients and supplier documents.

What shoppers can check

Consumers faced a product promoted by recognizable figures, a striking health promise and a label missing information needed to assess that promise. The buyer who commissioned testing helped bring the discrepancy into public view.

Shoppers can reduce their risk by checking both the claim and the label before buying a food or supplement:

• Be cautious about celebrity promoted health products that promise quick fixes.
• Look for clear labels listing active ingredients and amounts per serving.
• Check whether the brand names an independent laboratory and displays certificates.
• Compare the advertising with ordinary nutrition information. A plate of vegetables contains grams of fiber, rather than the tiny amount measured in these gummies.
• Watch for sugar alcohols such as sorbitol near the top of an ingredient list.
• Search the product name alongside words such as complaint or test to find consumer feedback.
• Ask a clinician before giving new supplements to children, older adults or people with chronic conditions.

The most useful comparison in this case was numerical: roughly 16 milligrams of measured fiber per gummy against a claimed 200 milligrams. Looking for an amount per serving gives shoppers something concrete to compare with a health promise.

What to Know

• Nguyen Thuc Thuy Tien, Pham Quang Linh and Hang Du Muc each received two years in prison for deceiving consumers through false gummy promotions.
• Tien, the Miss Grand International winner in 2021, held a 30 percent stake and profit share in the venture.
• Testing found about 0.935 percent fiber and more than 30 percent sorbitol in Kera Supergreens Gummies.
• One laboratory measured roughly 16 milligrams of fiber per gummy, compared with the claimed 200 milligrams.
• Court totals showed more than 129,000 packs sold to over 56,000 customers, with revenue above $650,000 and profit near $473,000.
• Authorities classified the gummies as counterfeit because their labeling omitted fiber information and the high sorbitol level.
• The campaign began in December 2024, followed by apologies and fines in March 2025, arrests in April and Tien's detention in May.