Wal-Mart faces a class action lawsuit alleging its herbal supplements did not contain the major ingredients advertised on the label.
Judy Owens filed the lawsuit on April 24 in U.S. District Court Northern District of California against Wal-Mart, alleging its Spring Valley supplements failed tests completed by the New York Attorney General's Office.
The lawsuit said the New York Attorney General's Office tested herbal supplements at four major retailers including GNC, Target and Walgreens in addition to Wal-Mart. It found the store brands of herbal supplements didn't contain the promised supplement, the suit says.
Six Spring Valley herbal supplements were tested including, Gingko Biloba, St. John's Wort, Ginseng, Garlic, Echinacea and Saw Palmetto, and the tests revealed contaminants such as pine, rice mustard, allium, wheat/grass, dracaena, citrus and cassava in the supplements, according to the suit.
The attorney general's office in New York asked the four retailers to stop selling their branded supplements. The suit alleges the products put consumers' health at risk, and could cause them harm if ingested.
Owens seeks class status and seeks more than $5 million in damages, plus court costs. She is represented by attorneys Sean Tamura-Sato, Jack W. Lee and Aron Liang of Minami Tamaki in San Francisco.
United States District Court Northern District of California case number 3:15-cv-01870.