by Long Island Attorney Paul A. Lauto, Esq.
In 2011 class action lawsuits were filed against Pepsico and Kellogs, as parent companies for Naked Juice and Kashi, for allegedly mislabeling certain products as "All Natural". In essence, the suits allege that the defendants lied to consumers by deliberately mislabeling Naked Juice and Kashi products as being completely natural and GMO free, when they instead are plentiful with synthetic chemicals.
Defendants motions to dismiss the cases have now been denied by the U.S. District Court. Accordingly, the litigation of these cases will now proceed to the discovery stage where all information and documentation relevant to the claims will be revealed and obtained. This case is similar in nature to Stewart v. Beam Global Spirits and Wine, Inc., as detailed in our July 20, 2012 blog (See www.liattorney.com/scales-of-justice.html). In that case, defendant was sued for labeling Skinny Girl Margarita drinks as "All Natural" when they allegedly contained chemical preservatives. The court in that case also refused to dismiss plaintiff's claim and allowed the case to proceed.
These consumer rights cases represent the reasonable expectation that labels will accurately represent the contents of products. A simple concept in and of itself, unfortunately has been made complicated in today's age of greed and misrepresentation. Perhaps consumers now have a need to not only read labels, but to question and verify them as well.
