Putative Class Action Alleges “Olive Oil” is 80 Percent Sunflower Oil

A plaintiff has filed a putative class action alleging Iberia Foods Corp. misleads consumers by selling its oil as Extra Virgin Olive Oil despite containing 80 percent sunflower oil. Okoe v. Iberia Foods Corp., No. 18-9161 (S.D.N.Y., filed October 5, 2018). The front label of the product, the complaint alleges, features a dark green background with the phrase “Sunflower Oil &” in black text and “Extra Virgin Olive Oil” in gold, allegedly causing the sunflower oil disclosure to be “barely distinguishable from the background” and “readily overlooked by consumers.” The plaintiff cites a number of sources—including the BBC, Quora, activationproducts.com and finecooking.com—to assert that sunflower oil is less desirable to consumers than extra virgin olive oil because of the purported health benefits of the latter. For allegations of fraud and violations of New York consumer-protection statutes, the plaintiff seeks class certification, damages, an injunction and attorney’s fees.