Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Category: Issue

  • Additional Heavy Metals Baby Food Lawsuit Dismissed

    A New Jersey federal court has dismissed claims filed against Plum PBC and Campbell Soup Co. alleging the companies sold baby food products containing high levels of heavy metals. In re Plum Baby Food Litig., No. 21-2417 (D.N.J., entered October 31, 2022). In finding that the plaintiffs lacked standing, the court echoed the reasoning followed by…

  • Ninth Circuit Declines En Banc Review of Acrylamide Decision

    The Ninth Circuit has denied the Council for Education and Research on Toxics’ petition for an en banc reconsideration of a March 2022 decision upholding a preliminary injunction on enforcing mandated warnings on products containing acrylamide under the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act of 1986 (Prop. 65). Cal. Chamber of Com. v. Council…

  • FDA Releases Foodborne Illness Report

    The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has announced the release of the Interagency Food Safety Analytics Collaboration’s annual report, which provides data on source attribution estimates for 2020 for Salmonella, E. coli and Listeria monocytogenes. The findings include that (i) “Salmonella illnesses came from a wide variety of foods”; (ii) “E. coli O157 illnesses were most often linked to…

  • Court Tosses Claims that Formula’s ‘Milk-based’ Labeling Misled Consumers

    A federal court in California has largely granted Mead Johnson & Company’s bid to throw out a proposed class action alleging the company misled consumers about just how much milk was in its Enfamil baby formulas. Martinez v. Mead Johnson & Co., LLC, No. 22-0213 (C.D. Cal., entered October 22, 2022). The court granted the…

  • Suit Alleges Mondelēz Misled Consumers on Source of Gum Flavoring

    An Illinois woman has filed a proposed class action against Mondelēz, alleging the company’s Trident gum misleads consumers into believing its flavoring comes from peppermint or mint ingredients rather than artificial flavoring. Lesorgen v. Mondelēz Global LLC, No. 22-50375 (N.D. Ill., filed October 28, 2022). The product at issue in the suit is Trident Original…

  • Yogurt Maker Faces Suit for ‘Naturally French’ Labeling

    A California consumer has filed a proposed class action against La Fermiere, alleging the yogurt maker misrepresented the origin of its products on its packaging. Manier v. La Fermiere Inc., No. 22-1894 (C.D. Cal., filed October 27, 2022). The plaintiff alleged she was misled by the product’s packaging into believing the yogurt she bought was…

  • Twenty Years of Food and Beverage Regulatory Developments

    2002  In the 2002 Farm Bill, Congress amended the Agricultural Marketing Act of 1946 to require retailers to notify their customers of the country of origin of covered commodities. 2003 FDA amended its regulations on nutrition labeling to require the inclusion of trans fats on the Nutrition Facts panel for conventional foods and dietary supplements.…

  • Contaminated Trader Joe’s Chicken Burgers Dispute Survives Motion to Dismiss

    A federal court has denied a bid by Pilgrim’s Pride to throw out claims it misrepresented chicken it packaged and sold as “boneless” that wound up in recalled Trader Joe’s Chili Lime Chicken Burgers for having excessive amounts of bone. Innovative Solutions Int’l Inc. v. Houlihan Trading Co., Inc., No. 22-296 (W.D. Wash., entered October…