Californians Sue Unilever for Marketing Margarine with Trans Fat as Healthy

California residents have filed a putative class action in federal court against the company that makes a number of margarine products, alleging that the products are falsely marketed “as healthful despite the fact its margarines have dangerous levels of artificial trans fat, a toxic food additive banned in many parts of the world.” Red v. Unilever U.S., Inc., No. 09-07855 (C.D. Cal., filed October 28, 2009).

According to the complaint, the defendant (i) “specifically markets its margarines as good for cardiovascular health,” (ii) uses “non-standard and deceptive charts” when comparing the nutritional value of margarine to butter, (iii) “misleads consumers by marketing its margarines as ‘cholesterol free,’ implying its products are desirable for those with high blood cholesterol levels,” and (iv) uses “words such as ‘natural’ and ‘nutritious’ to describe products with artificial trans fat and adding images of hearts.”

Among the products subject to the litigation are I Can’t Believe It’s Not Butter!®, Shedd’s Spread Country Crock® and Imperial Margarine®. The plaintiffs seek to certify a class of all those who purchased Unilever margarine products since January 1, 2000, and allege false advertising under the Lanham Act, and violations of California unfair competition, false advertising and consumer legal remedies laws. They request injunctive relief to stop the company from making false marketing claims, an order requiring corrective advertising, disgorgement of profits, destruction of misleading and deceptive advertising materials, restitution, costs, and attorney’s fees. Damages in excess of $5 million are alleged to invoke the court’s jurisdiction under the Class Action Fairness Act.