ALBANY, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – A consumer alleges that seafood product producer misrepresents its canned tuna and causes consumers to believe it is healthier than other manufacturers' products.
Abraham Jacob Warner, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint on April 4 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York against StarKist Co. over alleged violation of the New York Agriculture and Markets Law and other counts.
According to the complaint, the plaintiff alleges that defendant's canned tuna contains a "brazen misrepresentation" that causes him and class members to "falsely believe that StarKist products are healthier than products made by other food manufacturers" because the defendant uses the American Heart Association's Heart-Check Mark.
The plaintiff holds StarKist Co. responsible because the defendant allegedly failed to disclose that it pays to use the Heart-Check Mark and that it is a paid endorsement.
The plaintiff requests a trial by jury and seeks judgment for injunctive, declaratory, and equitable relief, monetary damages, reasonable costs, expenses, and such other and further relief as the court deems just and proper. He is represented by Todd S. Garber of Finkelstein, Blankinship, Frei-Pearson & Garber LLP in White Plains, New York.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York case number 1:18-cv-00406-GLS-ATB