On June 8, 2020, Judge Katherine Polk Failla in the Southern District of New York dismissed a putative class action against TGI Friday’s (“Friday’s”) for alleged deceptive advertising. The Plaintiff claimed the labeling of Friday’s “Sour Cream & Onion Potato Skins” chips is misleading because it led her to believe the snack contained real potato skins and was thus a healthier option than most chips. According to the Plaintiff, she—and the members of the putative…

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Chicken Industry Executives Indicted for Criminal Price-Fixing and Bid Rigging

By Luis M. Reyes, Lori Lustrin & Scott N. Wagner

June 5, 2020

On June 3, 2020, the Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted executives from Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation and Claxton Poultry Farms—two of the country’s largest chicken producers. The criminal action was filed in the District of Colorado, where Pilgrim’s Pride is headquartered. The individuals criminally charged are Pilgrim’s President and CEO, Jayson Penn and former Vice President, Roger Austin, as well as Claxton’s President, Mikell Fries, and Vice President, Scott Brady. The targeted victims of Defendants’ criminal…

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Big Win For General Mills as Eleventh Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Contaminated Cheerios Class Action

By Benjamin Mitchel, Lori Lustrin & Melissa Pallett-Vasquez

May 28, 2020

On May 20, 2020, the Eleventh Circuit affirmed the dismissal of a proposed class action against General Mills for its alleged failure to disclose the presence of a harmful chemical in its Cheerios cereal. The Eleventh Circuit agreed with District Judge Robert N. Scola Jr.’s finding that the Plaintiff failed to allege an actual injury sufficient to confer Article III standing.[1] The Plaintiff alleged General Mills failed to disclose that its Cheerios and Honey Nut…

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Peanut Farmers Successfully Allege Price-Fixing Conspiracy Against Industry Giants

By Brianna Sainte, Lori Lustrin & Ilana Drescher

May 22, 2020

In the latest of a series of antitrust lawsuits involving the food industry, a Virginia federal court last week denied a motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit alleging a price-fixing conspiracy in the peanut market. The class is comprised of peanut farmers and harvesters that sell the raw peanuts to the Defendants, who then process, shell, and sell the final product to food companies or other manufacturers.[1] According to the Class Plaintiffs’ April 2020…

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Setting the Table in a Post-COVID-19 World: The Restaurant Industry Rises Up to Tackle Its Greatest Challenge Yet (and Maybe Ever)

By Lori Lustrin, Ilana Drescher & Benjamin Mitchel

May 13, 2020

Work in the restaurant industry is a grind on a good day. Long hours, revolving staff, never-ending customer expectations, seasonality, supply chain issues, and intense competition are just a few of the daily headaches. As adept as restaurants have become at bracing for frequent storms, COVID-19 represents nothing short of their Hurricane Katrina. State and local orders issued in response to the global pandemic forced business closures nationwide—a paralyzing event from which some companies will…

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Putative Class Action Dismissed Over Ghirardelli White Chips

By Brianna Sainte, Melissa Pallett-Vasquez & Lori Lustrin

April 28, 2020

Last week U.S. District Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton granted Ghirardelli’s Motion to Dismiss a proposed class action involving the chocolatier’s packaging of its white baking chips. Filing their case in September of last year in California state court, the class plaintiffs alleged that the products were deceptively labeled because the use of the term “white” insinuated that the chips contained white chocolate when it, in fact, did not. Ghirardelli removed the case to federal court…

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FDA Temporarily Relaxes Food Labeling Regulations

By Jake Greenberg, Melissa Pallett-Vasquez & Lori Lustrin

April 24, 2020

Pursuant to standard FDA regulations, retail restaurants with 20 or more locations doing business under the same name (and offering the substantially same menu) are required to provide nutritional information for standard menu items, including calorie information. But with state and local governments’ recent orders in response to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing restaurants to close their dining rooms and switch to take-out or delivery only, many restaurants are also being forced to make impromptu changes…

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Class Action Ascertainability in the Eleventh Circuit: What Makes the Cut?

By Ilana Drescher, Lori Lustrin & Melissa Pallett-Vasquez

April 2, 2020

On March 19, 2020, Magistrate Judge Goodman recommended certifying a Florida class of purchasers of Prevagen, a memory-enhancement product developed by Quincy Bioscience, LLC.[1] Plaintiffs’ complaint asserts that Quincy violated Florida’s Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (FDUTPA) by representing to consumers that Prevagen can improve memory function when that “cannot possibly be true as a matter of body chemistry.” While the Plaintiffs in this case had not yet conducted discovery, they were…

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Consumers Allege Dishonesty from Honest Tea

By Melissa Pallett-Vasquez, Lori Lustrin & Luis M. Reyes

March 30, 2020

When America’s war on heart disease was kicked into gear by President Eisenhower’s heart attack in 1955, dietary fat was deemed the culprit. In an effort to improve health, people sought low-fat alternatives to their favorite foods. The market reacted and “low fat” products began appearing. But over the last few years, nutritionists have increasingly blamed sugar and carbohydrates, rather than fat, for heart-health issues. Not surprisingly, product labeling and advertising evolved to address consumer…

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FDA’s Congressional Report Confirms Slow But Steady Progress on CBD Regulation

By Jake Greenberg & Lori Lustrin

March 18, 2020

As the CBD boom continues to gain a foothold in mainstream commerce, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has been slow to provide retailers and consumers with meaningful guidance or regulation. On December 20, 2019—in response to prompting from Senate Majority Leader McConnell for FDA guidance on CBD regulation— the Further Consolidated Appropriations Act (the “Act”) (P.L. 116-94), was passed. The Act required the FDA to provide a report regarding its progress towards developing a…

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Serving up the latest legal developments impacting the Food & Beverage Industry

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Putative Class Action Against TGI Friday’s Dismissed

Chicken Industry Executives Indicted for Criminal Price-Fixing and Bid Rigging

Big Win For General Mills as Eleventh Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Contaminated Cheerios Class Action

Peanut Farmers Successfully Allege Price-Fixing Conspiracy Against Industry Giants

Setting the Table in a Post-COVID-19 World: The Restaurant Industry Rises Up to Tackle Its Greatest Challenge Yet (and Maybe Ever)

Putative Class Action Dismissed Over Ghirardelli White Chips

FDA Temporarily Relaxes Food Labeling Regulations

Class Action Ascertainability in the Eleventh Circuit: What Makes the Cut?

Consumers Allege Dishonesty from Honest Tea

FDA’s Congressional Report Confirms Slow But Steady Progress on CBD Regulation

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