Ninth Circuit Turns Down Gerber Request for Rehearing in Fruit Juice Snacks® Case
The Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals has denied the request by Gerber Products Co. to rehear the court’s April 2008 decision overturning the
dismissal of putative class claims that the company’s Fruit Juice Snacks® packaging misled consumers. Williams v. Gerber Prods. Co., No. 06-55921 (9th Cir., amended opinion filed December 22, 2008). A detailed summary of the court’s April ruling appears in issue 258 of this Update.
In its amended opinion, the court eliminated one sentence and reorganized two other sentences, but did not otherwise change its ruling that a detailed ingredients list in small type cannot shield a food manufacturer from liability for claims that its packaging misrepresents the quality of the product. “Instead, reasonable consumers expect that the ingredient list contains more detailed information about the product that confirms other representations on the packaging.”
The product at issue, intended for toddlers, is sold in a package with images of oranges, cherries and strawberries, although the lead ingredients are corn syrup and sugar. The court observed that calling such a product “nutritious” alone would be little more than non-actionable puffery, but noted that the packaging had a “number of features” that “could likely deceive a reasonable consumer.” A spokesperson for the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) hailed the ruling, stating, “The Court’s decision is a warning to all companies that try to make junk food look healthy by depicting nutritious fruits, vegetables, and whole grains on labels of sugary, high-calorie snacks.” CSPI will apparently serve as lead counsel when the proceedings resume. See CSPI Press Release, January 2, 2009.
