A consumer has filed a putative class action alleging PVK Inc. mislabels Scarpetta pasta sauces as containing “No Preservatives” despite including citric acid on the ingredient list. Jocelyn v. PVK Inc., No. 18-427 (E.D.N.Y., filed January 22, 2018). The plaintiff alleges that she relied on the representation on the container and would not have purchased the sauce had she known it contained preservatives. Claiming deceptive and unfair trade practices, false advertising and common-law fraud, the plaintiff seeks class certification, injunctive relief, restitution, disgorgement, damages, corrective advertising and attorney’s fees.
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A federal court has refused to dismiss putative class claims filed under California’s consumer protection law against a company that advertises its pasta sauce, which contains high-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), as “all natural.” Lockwood v. ConAgra Foods, Inc., No. 08-04151 (N.D. Cal., decided February 3, 2009). The defendant sought to dismiss the claims on preemption grounds and called for the class allegations to be stricken “because plaintiffs cannot prove reliance on a class-wide basis.” According to the court, the federal Nutrition Labeling and Education Act (NLEA) does not apply to the “complaint as currently pled. Plaintiffs do not allege that defendant’s pasta sauce contains artificial flavoring, coloring or a chemical preservative; rather, they allege that the ‘high fructose corn syrup’ is not produced by a natural process and therefore the pasta sauce is not ‘all natural.’” The court also found that the claims were not impliedly preempted because “Congress has explicitly stated…
