NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) — A class action lawsuit claims consumers expect more butter than they get in Mrs. Smith's pies that features a photo of two pats of butter on the box.
Yonnette Davis, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated, filed a complaint Oct. 9 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Schwan's Consumer Brands, alleging fraud and other claims.
Davis alleges in her class action that although the front label of the defendant's Mrs. Smith's Pies prominently promotes "Flaky Crust" and "Made With Real Butter," it is misleading to consumers. She further alleges that butter is not the main or exclusive shortening ingredient but rather a "shortening butter blend" made of palm oil and soybean oil is.
Davis claims Schwan's "ingredient combining" is confusing and designed so that consumers "will wrongly think" the product contains more butter than it does. She also claims this allows the defendant to sell the product at higher prices to consumers and that the use of oil shortenings causes the crust to lack "flaky attributes."
Davis and the class seek monetary relief, interest, trial by jury and all other just relief. They are represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates in Great Neck and James Chung of Chung Law PC in Bayside.
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York case number 1:23-CV-08866-VEC