A German court issued an injunction against a distributor of XanGo products from selling the company's mangosteen juice.

The injunction came after the court ruled that the distributor was in violation of Germany's novel food regulations. The European Union, of which Germany is a member, defines a novel food as foodstuffs that are not commonly used for human consumption in the EU.

Bob Freeze, a spokesman for Lehi-based XanGo, said the distributor is appealing the court's ruling, an appeal the company expects to succeed.

"We think there is plenty of evidence that the mangosteen is not a novel food," he said.

XanGo juices are still on German shelves, and Freeze said the ruling does not affect the company.

"There's thousands of other distributors that are continuing their business in Germany," he said.

Freeze said the appeals process could determine whether other German distributors face the same sanctions.

The EU began regulating novel foods in 1997.

This story appeared in The Daily Herald on page D6.