Category: Issue 462
-
7Up Sodas with Antioxidants to Disappear from Store Shelves
Dr. Pepper Snapple Group has reportedly announced that it will remove its 7UP products with antioxidants from the market by early 2013. The company evidently denied that its decision was related to a lawsuit filed against it by the Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI), which had alleged that the products were falsely…
-
CSPI Targets Caffeinated Snack Food
The Center for Science in the Public Interest (CSPI) has written a letter to the Food and Drug Administration’s Office of Compliance, claiming that caffeinated snack foods violate the agency’s determination “that caffeine is generally recognized as safe only in cola-type beverages and only at concentrations at 0.02 percent or less (about 72 mg per…
-
EEOC’s Discrimination Claims Against Hawaiian Farming Operations Narrowed
A federal court in Hawaii has dismissed in part a complaint filed by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) against farmers and a recruiting company that allegedly mistreated Thai workers. EEOC v. Global Horizons, Inc., No. 11-00257 (D. Hawaii, decided November 8, 2012). The court granted the motion to dismiss “insofar as the Court holds…
-
Ketchup Company Wage-Dispute Class Dismissed Without Prejudice
A federal court in California has dismissed putative class claims filed against H.J. Heinz Co. LP by a factory worker alleging that the company denied employees full wages by improperly rounding their time records while also purportedly penalizing and disciplining workers for “clocking in past scheduled start times or clocking out before scheduled end times.”…
-
First Circuit Upholds $14.1 Million Judgment in Starbucks Tip-Sharing Class Action
The First Circuit Court of Appeals has determined, as a matter of first impression, that Starbucks Corp. violated a Massachusetts law prohibiting restaurant tips to be shared with employees who have managerial responsibilities, because the “upscale coffee house” chain allowed tips collected in tip jars by the cash registers of its Massachusetts shops to be…
-
Just Another ‘Meatless’ Monday in LA
The Los Angeles City Council has reportedly approved a resolution endorsing the international “meatless Mondays” campaign, which aims to reduce meat consumption for health and environmental reasons. According to news sources, in a unanimous 12–0 vote, the council approved the resolution endorsing the campaign and encouraging residents to give up meat for one day a…
-
Soft-Drink Tax Rejected in Ireland
The Irish food and drink industry has reportedly rejected government proposals to impose a sugar tax on soft or “fizzy” drinks, calling the tax a “discriminatory” measure that “would have no health benefits and would further hit already hard-pressed Irish consumers.” Commenting on the issue, Food and Drink Industry Ireland (FDII) cited the “fat tax”…
-
Victoire for Nutella® Fans
France’s National Assembly has reportedly rejected a proposed tax on palm oil that appeared to be a go earlier in the week. On November 12, 2012, the French Senate voted 186-155 against the so-called “Nutella tax,” which aimed to impose a 300 percent tax on palm oil, a key ingredient in the beloved hazelnut-chocolate spread…