Vitamin C "A Drug," Say French Courts

Vitamin C800 is a drug by virtue of its function, the appeal court of Versailles has ruled, in the latest move on an issue over which French pharmacists have been battling with supermarket and hypermarket chains for nine years.

The judgement was based on medical evidence that "beyond the 100-150mg/day level" vitamin C ceases to be a nutritional item and "enters the pharmacological and therapeutic domain." It also ruled that the pharmacy monopoly on drug sales is not in conflict with the Treaty of Rome, and applies in this case.

The case was triggered by a court ban in Angers in March 1987 on sales of the product by the Carrefour chain. The economic aspect of the case is vital for the pharmacists, who have been trying to bar the sale of any dosage form of vitamin C; in 1994, the French consumed 10.9 million boxes of vitamins, of which 8.2 million were sold in pharmacies and 2.7 million in super- or hypermarkets, says data from Roche. The market is worth about 300 million French francs ($59.4 million), but the Neilsen Institute says that in 1994 pharmacies were charging 27.6 francs on average per box, compared with 16.05 francs in the supermarket.