Food & Beverage Litigation & Regulatory Update

Category: Issue 691

  • Seventh Circuit Finds Wisconsin Butter Law Constitutional

    The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit has upheld a Wisconsin law requiring butter sold within the state to bear a grade issued by a Wisconsin-licensed butter grader or the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Minerva Dairy Inc. v. Harsdorf, No. 18-1520 (7th Cir., entered October 3, 2018). The Ohio dairy challenging the…

  • No Trademark For “Corn Thins,” Federal Circuit Holds

    The Federal Circuit has affirmed a Trademark Trial and Appeal Board (TTAB) decision refusing to grant a trademark to Real Foods Pty Ltd. for “Corn Thins” and “Rice Thins,” finding the terms to be “merely descriptive.” Real Foods Pty Ltd. v. Frito-Lay N. Am. Inc., Nos. 17-1959, 17-2009 (Fed. Cir., entered October 4, 2018). Frito-Lay…

  • Plaintiff Alleges LaCroix Contains Synthetic Ingredients

    A consumer has filed a putative class action alleging that several ingredients in LaCroix sparkling water, which is marketed as “always 100% natural,” are “non-natural flavorings and synthetic compounds.” Rice v. Nat’l Beverage Corp., No. 2018-CH-12302 (Ill. Cir. Ct., Cook Cty., filed October 1, 2018). The plaintiff alleges that the ingredients are synthetic and therefore…

  • Salmonella Outbreak Prompts Lawsuit Against JBS Tolleson

    A consumer has filed a lawsuit alleging that he contracted Salmonella from beef supplied to a restaurant by JBS Tolleson Inc. Rozich v. JBS Tolleson Inc., No. 18-1929 (D. Nev., filed October 8, 2018). The plaintiff alleges his infection stemmed from an outbreak of Salmonella that resulted in JBS recalling nearly seven million pounds of…

  • AriZona Teas’ “No Preservatives” Claim Misleads Consumers, Lawsuit Alleges

    Three consumers have filed a putative class action alleging that Arizona Beverage Co.’s teas, energy drinks and fruit juices are misleadingly marketed as containing “no preservatives” despite containing citric and ascorbic acids. Kubilius v. Arizona Beverage Co., No. 18-9075 (S.D.N.Y., filed October 3, 2018). The plaintiffs assert that they paid a premium for the products…

  • FDA Removes 7 Flavorings From Food Additives List

    Following a petition from several advocacy groups, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has deauthorized the use of seven synthetic substances used as flavoring in foods. The agency found that the advocacy groups provided data demonstrating that six ingredients cause cancer in animals—benzophenone, ethyl acrylate, eugenyl methyl ether, myrcene, pulegone and pyridine—and removed styrene…

  • Shook Attorneys to Present on Prop. 65 with Western Growers

    Shook Partners Paul La Scala and Naoki Kaneko, with Associate Emily Weissenberger, will join Western Growers Vice President and General Counsel Jason Resnick for a complimentary webinar on the Safe Drinking Water and Toxic Enforcement Act (Prop. 65). The webinar will cover (i) Prop. 65 warnings at facilities; (ii) product labels on packaging and websites;…