WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (Legal Newsline) – Trader Joe's is facing suit over allegations it is misleading customers by disguising the sugar content in its brand of Organic Corn Flakes cereal as evaporated cane juice.
Jennifer Lopez-Barnett, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint Dec. 14 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Trader Joe's Co. alleging negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranty, implied warranty of merchantability and the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, fraud and unjust enrichment.
The plaintiff alleges in her complaint that because Trader Joe's Organic Corn Flakes cereal product is "marketed as a standard, no frills corn flakes, and are shown being consumed with fresh raspberries and blueberries, consumers will expect that 'evaporated cane juice' bears a relationship to actual fruit, including those prominently displayed and is certainly not the equivalent of sugar."
She alleges this marketing gives the impression to consumers that the cereal is a "better nutritional choice" than comparable products.
"The product’s deceptive labeling is especially egregious because defendant is a grocery store with a reputation for selling health food products of high nutritional quality," the suit states.
The plaintiff seeks restitution, a trial by jury, interest and all other just relief. She is represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC in Great Neck, New York, and Peter Wasylyk of The Law Offices of Peter Wasylyk in Providence, Rhode Island.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York case number 7:19-CV-11469