Anne Bucher  |  October 15, 2014

Category: Consumer News

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Perdue Harvestland ChickenKroger Co. and Perdue Farms Inc. have agreed to settle class action lawsuits over allegedly mislabeled chicken. The settlements will resolve chicken labeling class action lawsuits that were pending in California, Florida and New Jersey.

The Humane Society of the United States (HSUS) filed the chicken labeling class action lawsuits against Perdue on behalf of consumers in Florida and New Jersey, and a consumer filed the Kroger class action lawsuit in California. Perdue is the fourth-largest poultry company in the United States, and Kroger is the largest U.S. supermarket operator.

HSUS alleged Perdue falsely labeled its Harvestland branded chicken as “humanely raised” even though it did not follow the process required by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to qualify for the humane label. According to the chicken labeling class action lawsuit, Perdue’s standards were based on guidelines developed by the National Chicken Council, an industry trade group. The Perdue class action lawsuit alleged these industry standards were inhumane.

The chicken label allegedly contained a USDA verification, but according to the Perdue class action lawsuit, the verification comes from the USDA Agricultural Marketing Service, “whose mission is to increase the sales of farmed products.”

The chicken labeling class action lawsuit alleged Perdue’s “humanely raised” label was an effort to capitalize on consumers’ increasing awareness of animal cruelty and inhumane practices in the poultry industry. Consumers allegedly paid a premium for what they thought were humanely raised chickens that were actually subjected to “extreme pain,” the class action lawsuit said.

Under the terms of the Perdue class action settlement, HSUS agreed to dismiss its chicken labeling lawsuit claims and Perdue agreed to remove the “humanely raised” label from its packaging.

Last week, Kroger agreed to make similar labeling changes in a class action settlement over allegations it improperly labeled its Simple Truth brand chicken as being “raised in a humane environment.” In that class action lawsuit, plaintiff Anna Ortega alleged Kroger violated California consumer protection laws by implying its chicken products were exceptional for being raised cage-free because chickens that are used to produce meat are not raised in cages.

According to the Kroger class action lawsuit, Perdue is the chicken supplier for Kroger, which introduced its Simple Truth brands about two years ago.

Perdue and Kroger expect the chicken labeling changes to be complete in 2015.

The Chicken Labeling Class Action Lawsuits are Wendy Roy, et al. v. Perdue Farms Inc., Case No. 6:13-cv-01656, in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida; Hemy v. Perdue Farms Inc., et al., Case No. 3:11-cv-00888, in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey; and Ortega v. The Kroger Co., Case No. 2:14-cv-01949, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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4 thoughts onKroger, Perdue Farms Settle Chicken Labeling Class Action Lawsuits

  1. Marlon Romero says:

    Add me

  2. Anne says:

    Reading this makes me want to go completely vegetarian :(

  3. J johnson says:

    Is there a class action suit for people to enter on this ?

  4. Johnique Bryant says:

    I purchases this chicken from food 4 less and Ralph’s grocery stores in Inglwood ca

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