SAN FRANCISCO (Legal Newsline) - The maker of V8 juices is again arguing for the dismissal of a class action lawsuit that says there is too much sugar in fruit and vegetable blends for them to be considered healthy.
Campbell Soup filed its third motion to dismiss on Feb. 3 in California federal court, as plaintiff lawyers have amended their claims after the previous two were dismissed. Campbell says any reasonable consumer knows juice is "not the same thing as whole fruits and vegetables" and can simply read the nutrition label if he or she is curious.
"(W)hen the court allowed Plaintiffs to make a third and final attempt to state a cognizable claim, it suggested narrow grounds on which Plaintiffs might possibly salvage their claims," the new motion says.
"Plaintiffs could attempt to amend with survey evidence examining the V8 juices' labels that might purport to show that their interpretation of those labels is plausible. Plaintiffs did not follow the court's guidance."
Surveys cited in the third complaint pertain to "all natural" claims, labeling for hypothetical cereals or calories in ice cream, the motion says. A December decision in another case against Campbell Soup said "generic commentaries about sugar consumption and health concerns... does not make it any more plausible that a consumer would be deceived..."
"The other new allegations pertain to non-label statements made in websites or print advertisements, none of which aids the plausibility of Plaintiffs' twice-repudiated theory of deception," the motion says.
Attorney Paul Joseph of Fitzgerald Joseph brought the lawsuit last year. The drinks are marketed to “boost your morning nutrition” while containing “healthy greens,” the suit says, but sugar leaves drinkers susceptible to diabetes and liver disease, among other health problems.
Campbell Soup filed its third motion to dismiss on Feb. 3 in California federal court, as plaintiff lawyers have amended their claims after the previous two were dismissed. Campbell says any reasonable consumer knows juice is "not the same thing as whole fruits and vegetables" and can simply read the nutrition label if he or she is curious.
"(W)hen the court allowed Plaintiffs to make a third and final attempt to state a cognizable claim, it suggested narrow grounds on which Plaintiffs might possibly salvage their claims," the new motion says.
"Plaintiffs could attempt to amend with survey evidence examining the V8 juices' labels that might purport to show that their interpretation of those labels is plausible. Plaintiffs did not follow the court's guidance."
Surveys cited in the third complaint pertain to "all natural" claims, labeling for hypothetical cereals or calories in ice cream, the motion says. A December decision in another case against Campbell Soup said "generic commentaries about sugar consumption and health concerns... does not make it any more plausible that a consumer would be deceived..."
"The other new allegations pertain to non-label statements made in websites or print advertisements, none of which aids the plausibility of Plaintiffs' twice-repudiated theory of deception," the motion says.
Attorney Paul Joseph of Fitzgerald Joseph brought the lawsuit last year. The drinks are marketed to “boost your morning nutrition” while containing “healthy greens,” the suit says, but sugar leaves drinkers susceptible to diabetes and liver disease, among other health problems.