CHICAGO (Legal Newsline) — Chobani is facing a class action alleging it is deceiving consumers with its "zero sugar" yogurt.
Jason Franco, Abigail, Franco, Misty M. Lacy and John D. Baker filed a complaint May 15 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division against Chobani LLC alleging violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and other claims.
The plaintiffs allege in their class action that Chobani has engaged in a "nationwide scheme" by deceiving customers with its "zero sugar" yogurt. Specifically, the plaintiffs claim that Chobani sweetens the yogurt by adding allulose which is a naturally occurring sugar that sweetens items like raisins, maple syrup and brown sugar and is a "monosaccharide epimer of fructose."
The plaintiffs allege that chemically, monosaccharide falls into the FDA's definition of sugar. They also allege that allulose can cause gastrointestinal issues, nausea, bloating, diarrhea and other stomach issues. They claim Chobani's deceptive label violates federal and state laws and that consumers have been tricked into purchasing the yogurt because they reasonably believe that the product contains "zero sugar."
The plaintiffs seek monetary relief, interest, trial by jury and all other just relief. They are represented by Yates French, Heather Kramer and Amanda Zannoni of Rathje Woodward LLC in Wheaton, Illinois and Alexander Burke of The Burke Law Offices LLC in Evanston, Illinois.
U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois Eastern Division case number 1:23-CV-03047