Gwyneth Paltrow's Goop to Pay $145,000 in Vaginal Egg Settlement

The Oscar winner's lifestyle brand has agreed to shell out refunds to customers who purchased one of their jade eggs, rose quarts eggs or inner judge flower essence blends.

Those vaginal eggs are going to cost Gwyneth Paltrow's brand, Goop, more than their $66 selling price. 

Remember those yoni eggs Goop sells online? The ones that raised eyebrows among some gynecologists, sparked immediate headlines and a few punchlines? Well, the company has settled a consumer protection action brought against them by the California Food, Drug, and Medical Device Task Force as a result of a complaint filed on Friday.

The complaint claimed that the brand "made unsubstantiated claims about  three products—the Jade Egg, Rose Quartz Egg, and Inner Judge Flower Essence Blend— that were not supported by competent and reliable scientific evidence," a press release from the Orange County District Attorney's office said. "Goop advertised that the Jade and Rose Quartz eggs could balance hormones, regulate menstrual cycles, prevent uterine prolapse, and increase bladder control. Goop advertised that the Inner Judge Flower Essence Blend could help prevent depression."

As a result of the settlement, Goop has agreed to pay $145,000 in civil penalties based on the sale of the products in California. The company is also "barred from making any claims regarding the efficacy of its products without possessing competent and reliable scientific evidence, and from manufacturing or selling any misbranded, unapproved, or falsely-advertised medical devices," the press release noted. 

Goop will also issue full refunds at the request of any customer who purchased any of the three items between January 12 and August 31 in 2017. 

"While goop believes there is an honest disagreement about these claims, the company wanted to settle this matter quickly and amicably," a statement from the company read. "This settlement does not indicate any liability on goop's part. While the company has not received any complaints regarding these product claims, it is happy to fully refund any goop customer who has purchased any of the challenged products."

Chief Financial Officer Erica Moore further added in a statement, "goop provides a forum for practitioners to present their views and experiences with various products like the jade egg. The law, though, sometimes views statements like this as advertising claims, which are subject to various legal requirements...The Task Force assisted us in applying those laws to the content we published, and we appreciate their guidance in this matter as we move from a pioneer in this space to an established wellness authority."

In an effort to provide accurate information about their products, Goop has also revealed the development of a new wellness portal, staffed by "experienced nutritional science researchers, product safety experts and traditional Chinese medicine doctors," to vet "all ingredients and claims for every ingestible product that we sell on goop."