'Magic dirt': How the internet fueled, and defeated, the pandemic's weirdest company

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NEW: For 25 years, a man sold dirt on the internet — most recently for $110 per bag. This summer, some Facebook groups began posting that they were cooking and bathing with it. Last week, during BrandyZadrozny’s reporting, the product was taken offline.

“Right now, it’s scary,” Montaruli said in a Zoom call posted publicly, referring to the outlandish claims made by some of BOO’s sellers. “In 21 years, I have never seen anything like this. Never.”

A common strategy for MLM participants, including BOO sellers, is to create Facebook groups to collaborate and attract new customers.And so in September, the Facebook groups evolved — many went private, most changed their names from BOO to “fulvic acid,” and the pinned testimonials from customers claiming miracle cures were wiped clean, tweaked or edited to add a disclaimer absolving the company from any liability.

Beyond the questions of the health benefits of fulvic acid, there’s the question of just what is in Black Oxygen Organics’ product. The BOO product was analyzed for the presence of heavy metals at Ohio State’s Trace Element Research Laboratory. Results from that test were similar to the company’s 2017 certificate, finding two doses per day exceeded Health Canada’s limit for lead, and three doses for daily arsenic amounts.

, filed on behalf of four Georgia residents who purchased BOO, claims that the company negligently sold a product with “dangerously high levels of toxic heavy metals,” which led to physical and economic harm.“The doctor said it was the antibiotics,” said Marc Saint-Onge, BOO’s founder and CEO. “But we believe it was the mud.

According to BOO President Carlo Garibaldi, they had weathered the FTC complaints, the FDA seizures, the Health Canada recalls and the online mob. But the “fatal blow” came when their online merchant dropped them as clients.

 

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Wow. A product marketed based on the saving there’s one born every minute. Big seller in red states, no doubt.

Too many people should have care takers!

I'm in the UK and have just watched 'The Wire'. The start of the last season, Bunk says 'Americans are the most stupid people in the world. You can tell them anything and they'll believe it'!!

America…where no Con Artist ever goes broke.

Snake oil salespeople have always existed and always will.

😂😂😂🤯

MAGA LIFE

Also why won’t you say anything about the Texas dad who got shot trying to pick up his kid? Parental alienation and courts not enforcing parental rights is a epidemic in this country. But you don’t wanna address it at all. I guess those are poor problems right? No one‘s helping.

'Miracle Dirt' AKA $BTC

People willing to believe anything these days! 🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️🤦🏽‍♀️

Join the instaforex

“Contains high levels of led and arsnic”

OMG, it's catshit, not dirt. Try it.

I’ll donate if they will continue to consume it.

How incredibly pathetic is that? 🙄

PT Barnum was proven right, yet again.

Sounds like something Indians do with cow dung.

BrandyZadrozny

BrandyZadrozny

BrandyZadrozny Is this any more ridiculous than the people that think crystals have magic powers?

BrandyZadrozny IDGAF

Black Oxygen Organics, or “BOO”, was marketed as fulvic acid, a compound derived from decayed plants, that was dug up from an Ontario peat bog. Put more simply, the product is dirt — 4.5 ounces of it, sealed in a sleek black plastic bag and sold for $110 plus shipping.

BrandyZadrozny And now there are magic dirt merchants🤣

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