An Alabama resident has reportedly filed seven lawsuits in federal court against companies that make or sell orange juice products advertised as 100 percent pure or natural when they are actually “a product of industrial processing and laboratory-flavored juices.” Veal v. Tropicana Prods., Inc., No. 12-00804 (N.D. Ala., filed March 13, 2012). John Veal apparently alleges breach of contract and breach of warranty against each defendant on behalf of nationwide classes of consumers. According to a news source, he claims that he would not have purchased the products had he known the truth about their contents and would not have paid the higher prices charged for them. Among those sued were Simply Orange Juice Co., Tropicana Products Inc. and Winn Dixie Stores Inc. See Everything Alabama Blog, blog.al.com, March 15, 2012.
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The Council of the European Union (EU) has adopted a directive banning the use of added sugars in any fruit juices sold in Europe. According to a March 8, 2012, Council press release, the new directive “incorporates the current industry practice of not adding sugars to fruit juices” and will phase out “no added sugars” labeling after a transitional period, at the end of which “all fruit juices present on the market are not allowed to contain added sugars anymore.” The directive also addresses labeling for fruit nectars, which evidently cannot be made without added sweeteners; adds tomatoes “to the list of fruits used for fruit juice production”; and confirms that product names must indicate the fruits included in the juice. Expected to take effect by the beginning of June, the directive gives member states 18 months after enactment to transpose its provisions into national law. “The new rules will apply…
A Georgia resident has filed a complaint in federal court on behalf of a statewide class of consumers allegedly misled about the purported health benefits of POM Wonderful’s pomegranate products. Templeton v. POM Wonderful, LLC, No. 12-53 (S.D. Ga., filed February 16, 2012). According to the complaint, the company promotes its products “as having special health benefits, including but not limited to, the prevention[,] mitigation, and/or treatment of the following: (a) Atherosclerosis; (b) Blood Flow/Pressure; (c) Prostate Cancer, (d) Erectile Function; (e) Cardiovascular Disease; (f) Reduce LDL Cholesterol; (g) and other age-related medical conditions.” Citing investigations by the National Advertising Division of the Council of Better Business Bureaus, the U.K.’s Advertising Standards Authority, U.S. Food and Drug Administration, and U.S. Federal Trade Commission, the plaintiff claims that these promotions are not substantiated by medical evidence. Alleging violations of the Georgia Uniform Deceptive Trade Practices Act and unjust enrichment, the plaintiff…
U.S. Representatives Frank Pallone Jr. (D-N.J.) and Rosa DeLauro (D-Conn.) have proposed legislation (H.R. 3984) that would require the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) to establish standards for arsenic and lead in fruit juices within two years. Titled the “Arsenic Prevention and Protection from Lead Exposure in Juice Act of 2012,” or the “APPLE Juice Act of 2012,” the proposal is designed to “protect children from harmful health effects of significant juice consumption,” the lawmakers said in a joint press release. Calling for lead and arsenic to be as strictly regulated in juice as they are in bottled water, the lawmakers said the bill came in response to a Consumer Reports investigation revealing “alarmingly high levels” of the toxins in apple and grape juice in New Jersey, New York and Connecticut. “We must ensure that the juices our children drink are safe, particularly when 70 percent of the apple juice…
A Pennsylvania resident has filed a putative class action in a Florida federal court seeking to represent Florida and multistate classes of consumers allegedly misled by claims that Tropicana orange juice products are “pure” and “natural.” Pederson v. PepsiCo, No. 12-00104 (M.D. Fla., filed January 18, 2012). Similar to lawsuits already filed in New Jersey and California, this complaint alleges that Tropicana branded fruit juices are extensively processed and flavored for mass-marketing purposes. Additional information about the other lawsuits appears in Issue 422 of this Update. According to the complaint, “Defendants heavily process Tropicana Orange Juice by pasteurizing, de-aerating, and storing it for long periods of time at a ‘tank farm’ and under a nitrogen blanket, which strips the juice of its flavor and aroma. Defendants then re-flavor the product with chemical ‘flavor packets’ before it is packaged into a carton and sold to the consumer.” Alleging violations of the Florida…
Putative class actions have been filed in New Jersey and California federal courts against Tropicana Products, Inc., alleging that the company misleads consumers by labeling and marketing its orange juice as “100% pure and natural,” when it actually “undergoes extensive processing which includes the addition of aromas and flavors.” Lynch v. Tropicana Prods., Inc., No. 11-07382 (D.N.J., filed December 19, 2011); Lewis v. Tropicana Prods., Inc., No. 12-00049 (E.D. Cal., filed January 6, 2012). Both plaintiffs seek to certify nationwide classes. The New Jersey plaintiff alleges unjust enrichment, breach of express warranty, violation of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, and injunctive and declaratory relief. He requests compensatory, treble and punitive damages; prejudgment interest; restitution; injunctive relief; attorney’s fees; and expenses and costs of suit. The California plaintiff, who also seeks to certify a subclass of California consumers, alleges unjust enrichment; breach of express warranty; violation of the state Consumers…
According to news sources, the Center for Food Safety, which lost its challenge to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA’s) decision to deregulate without restriction genetically engineered (GE) alfalfa, plans to appeal the matter to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. A federal court in California determined on January 5, 2012, that the law does not require the agency to “account for the effects of cross-pollination on other commercial crops” in assessing whether a new crop poses risks. U.S. District Judge Samuel Conti also reportedly said that USDA lacks the authority to require a buffer zone between GE crops and conventional or organic crops. Noting that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved the use of glyphosate on Roundup Ready® alfalfa, Conti further observed, “If plaintiffs’ allegations are true, then it is disturbing that EPA has yet to assess the effects of glyphosate on most of the species found near…
A California resident is seeking to certify a nationwide class in a lawsuit alleging that Walgreens Co. 100% Grape Juice and 100% Apple Juice contain “dangerously high levels” of lead and arsenic. Boysen v. Walgreen Co., No. 11-6262 (N.D. Cal., filed December 13, 2011). According to the complaint, the levels of lead and arsenic in these beverages are higher than FDA limits on these chemicals in bottled water, and the company fails to disclose information about the contaminants on product labels or in advertising. The plaintiff alleges that California includes lead and arsenic on the list of those substances known to the state to cause cancer or reproductive harm, but does not otherwise include a Proposition 65 claim. Alleging unfair business acts or practices and false or misleading advertising under California law, breach of implied warranty, and unjust enrichment, the plaintiff seeks restitution; actual, statutory and punitive damages; injunctive relief; attorney’s…
A federal court in Alabama has granted in part a motion to stay discovery in litigation alleging that an orange juice maker misrepresented that its product is not made from juice concentrate, but is rather “100% pure Florida squeezed.” Leftwich v. TWS Mktg. Group, Inc., No. 11-1879 (N.D. Ala., order entered December 12, 2011). The court will allow discovery as to “general personal jurisdiction” over the non-resident beverage maker to proceed, while staying discovery as to all other matters. Residents of Indiana and Alabama brought the putative class action after the Food and Drug Administration warned the company in November 2010 that its labeling violated the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. According to the court, if jurisdiction over the defendant is lacking, it will dismiss the Indiana plaintiff, “leaving [the Alabama plaintiff] to proceed only on the count of unjust enrichment—which itself is still subject for consideration in [the…
According to a news source, Pom Wonderful LLC, which was seeking $18.1 million in lost sales from Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc. for falsely selling a pomegranate juice product with just trace amounts of pomegranate juice, lost its case following less than two hours’ deliberation by a federal jury. Pom Wonderful LLC V. Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc., No. 09-00565 (C.D. Cal., verdict reached December 6, 2011). The trial apparently became a battle of experts who cited conflicting statistics on whether Ocean Spray misled consumers about the quantity of pomegranate juice in its Cranberry & Pomegranate® juice blend, which evidently contains mostly grape and apple juice. Pom Wonderful sought to show that Ocean Spray took advantage of Pom’s extensive medical research into the purported health benefits of pomegranate juice. The company has reportedly lost two other consumer deception cases filed against Welch Foods Inc. and Tropicana Products Inc. See The National Law…
