Burger King Impossible Whopper Lawsuit Dismissed

A Florida federal court has dismissed a putative class action alleging that Burger King Corp. misled consumers with the release of its Impossible Whopper. Williams v. Burger King Corp., No. 19-24755 (S.D. Fla., entered July 20, 2020). The plaintiff, a vegan, argued that Burger King’s marketing misled him into believing the Impossible Whopper, made with the plant-based Impossible Burger, would abide by vegan dietary restrictions, but the patty was cooked on the same grill as meat patties. The court disagreed, finding that “Burger King promised a non-meat patty and delivered with the ‘Impossible Burger.'”

“Plaintiffs’ argument, however, loses momentum when they claim there was a presumption the ‘Impossible’ patties would be cooked on a different grill than other items sold at Burger King,” the court held. “This is not an essential term of the contract. Furthermore, as Burger King’s slogan has boasted for forty years, Plaintiffs’ could have ‘Had it [their] way’ by requesting a different cooking method, thereby altering the terms of the contract.”