What are the fraud laws they were claiming: false advertising and consumer fraud
What were the plaintiff’s arguments: A total of 50 lawsuits were filed. Plaintiffs argued that they had been cheated by deceptive labels saying “100% Parmesan” sold by Kraft Heinz, Walmart, Target, Albertsons and others. 1/10th of the products were found to be made up of cellulose after it was tested by the FDA. After the judge dismissed the case the plaintiffs’ attorneys argues that reasonable consumers should not be expected to understand “intricacies relating to the shelf life and processing of” grated cheese. But the judge still insist that a reasonable consumer would not be naïve enough to think that there really isn’t anything else in their product.
Cool facts about cheese in general and/or parmesan cheese:
– Archaeological studies believe cheese was first made around 6000 BC.
– Parmesan cheese probably originated in Parma or in Tuscany in the 11th century.
– There are more than 2000 varieties of cheese available worldwide.
– Pizza Hut is the largest cheese-using fast food giant, it uses approximately 300 million pounds of cheese annually.
– 10 pounds of milk is required to make one pound of cheese.
– Some varieties of cheese like mozzarella, cheddar, Swiss and American, help prevent tooth decay.
– Parmigiano-Reggiano is made only from April 1 to November 11
– In 2008 Italy spent $65 million dollars to bail out the Parmigiano Reggiano and Grana Padano cheese industries.
Are there other similar law suits: Lawsuits challenging food labels are on the rise.
Suits filed against Trader Joe’s alleging the grocery chain is underfilling its 5-ounce cans of tuna and therefore misleading customers.
Suits filed against Quaker Oats alleging consumers have been misled because Maple & Brown Sugar oatmeal does not contain maple syrup despite the wording and images of maple syrup on the packaging.
Who sells the most cheese:
A statisical breakdown of cheese prodcution by state show that Wisconsin makes 2,855,681 (in 1000 pounds) and California comes in second at 2,312,895 (1000 pounds).
What is the most sold cheese: According to the U.S.D.A., Americans eat over 30 pounds of cheese a year. 11.5 pounds of that is mozzarella, and cheddar has come in second place for two years in a row totaling 9.6 pounds. So mozzarella is the most popular form of cheese in the United States
Fun Fact: In 2014 Time Magazine reported the European Union proposed a ban on the United States from using certain cheese names. As part of ongoing E.U./U.S. trade talks, American cheese makers will not be able to label their products using “ parmesan, asiago, feta, gruyere, gorgonzola, fontina, romano and others that refer to European regions from which those cheeses originate.” Domestic cheese producers would be forced to rename their products.
