Category: Issue 470
-
General Mills Settles Yo-Plus Digestive Health Claims Suits
General Mills has agreed to establish an $8.5 million fund to settle claims that it falsely advertised its Yo-Plus yogurt as a product that helped naturally regulate “digestive health.” Johnson v. General Mills, Inc., No. 10-61 (C.D. Cal., stipulation of settlement filed February 4, 2013). If the court approves the agreement, purchasers throughout the United…
-
Energy Shot Maker Sued for Making Allegedly False Claims
A California resident has reportedly filed a putative class action against the company that makes 5-Hour Energy® shots, claiming that “no genuine scientific research” and “no scientifically reliable studies” support the company’s claims that the product provides “any more additional benefits over a caffeine tablet or a cup of coffee.” Soto v. Innovation Ventures, LLC,…
-
Olive Oil Trade Group Challenges Capatriti® Brand as Inauthentic
The North American Olive Oil Association has brought an unfair competition and false advertising action against The Gourmet Factory claiming that it sells its Capatriti® brand as “100% Pure Olive Oil” when it is actually made from “leftover olive skins and pits using a combination of chemical solvents and high temperatures.” N. Am. Olive Oil…
-
Federal Court Dismisses Suit Challenging Absence of Bee Pollen in Honey
A federal court in Wisconsin has dismissed as preempted a putative class action alleging that the company which makes Sue Bee Clover Honey® violates a state honey-labeling standard by failing to disclose that the product does not contain bee pollen. Regan v. Sioux Honey Ass’n Coop., No. 12-758 (E.D. Wis., decided January 31, 2013). The…
-
Russia Extends Meat Ban to Turkey Products
Russia has reportedly imposed a ban on U.S. turkey imports, effective February 11, 2013, thus extending a ban on pork and beef imports in an ongoing dispute over the use of growth stimulant ractopamine in animal feed. According to a news source, Russia’s Federal Service for Veterinary and Phytosanitary Surveillance (VPSS) made the decision after repeated…
-
FSA Publishes Testing Protocol for Beef Samples
In the wake of a recent investigation conducted by the Food Standards Authority of Ireland that identified horse and pig DNA in beef products, the U.K. Food Standards Agency (FSA) and Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs have published their own protocol for testing “food authenticity in processed meat products.” According to a February…
-
European Parliament Votes to Reform Fishing Policy
The European Parliament has approved a major reform of the Common Fisheries Policy (CFP) that aims to return fisheries “to sustainable stock levels” by 2020. According to a February 6, 2013, press release, the reforms will prevent member states “from setting quotas that are too high to be sustainable” and compel fishermen “to respect the…
-
FDA Issues Rule on Administrative Detention of Food
The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has issued a final rule that adopts, without change, the interim final rule (IFR) titled “Criteria Used to Order Administrative Detention of Food for Human or Animal Consumption” that was published in the Federal Register on May 5, 2011. Effective February 5, 2013, the final rule affirms IFR’s change…