Shook Partner Jim Muehlberger and Of Counsel John Johnson III have authored an article for Law360 detailing litigation targeting honey producers. "Honey producers have sometimes been accused of diluting their product with syrup," they explain. "They have also faced many other accusations, including that their honey contains contaminants, that it lacks some key quality characteristic, or that its country of origin has been wrongly declared." The article discusses the relevant U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations, noting that the agency "has not generally developed legally enforced quality parameters for honey," as well as litigation targeting the product. "In the 2010s, a wave of litigation focused on filtered honey, which has the pollen removed from it to meet consumer preferences for characteristics like increased clarity and slower crystallization. In these suits, the plaintiffs alleged that the filtered honey was not honey because, according to some definitions, '[no] pollen … may be removed except where this is unavoidable in…
Tag Archives class action
A New York federal court has denied class certification to a group of consumers alleging that they were misled by Kellogg Co.'s Pringles Salt & Vinegar chips label into believing the product contained no artificial ingredients. Marotto v. Kellogg Co., No. 18-3545 (S.D.N.Y., entered December 5, 2019). The plaintiff identified himself as a chef who has a deep knowledge of molecular gastronomy and is married to an attorney who works at a law firm seeking to represent the putative class. "Unfortunately, for [the plaintiff], once he popped, the fun did, ultimately, stop," the court noted, explaining that the plaintiff stated he was misled by the sodium diacetate and malic acid on the ingredient list. The court found that the plaintiff "plainly failed to satisfy the predominance requirement" because only four of 20 Pringles labels contained the challenged "No Artificial Flavors" label. "How is the Court supposed to sift through tens…
