Kona Coffee Farmers False Advertising Class Action Settlement Website Is Live

UPDATE 5:

• Settlement payments were mailed Feb. 10, 2022, to Class Members who submitted timely and valid claims.

UPDATE 4: 

• The Court granted this settlement final approval on June 25, 2021.

UPDATE 3:

• The final approval hearing has been rescheduled for June 24, 2021, and will be held via Zoom. Visit the settlement website for details on how to access the hearing.

UPDATE 2:

• The final approval hearing is being rescheduled in order to accommodate the new Juneteenth federal holiday.
• TCA will update viewers when the new date becomes available.

UPDATE:

• As of March 18, 2021, Costco, Gold Coffee Roasters, and Marshalls/T.J. Maxx parent company TJX have joined the list of settling defendants in this case, according to Daily Coffee News.
• Costco and TJX have agreed to more stringent labeling requirements, while Gold Coffee Roasters will pay $6.1 million.
• The total settlement fund now sits at $13.1 million.

Kona coffee farmers have reached a $7 million class action settlement with several coffee companies, and a website has been established for Class Members seeking information.

The settlement Class includes all persons and entities who, between Feb. 27, 2015, and February 17, 2021, farmed Kona coffee in the Kona District and then sold their Kona coffee. 

BCC Assets LLC, doing business as Boyer’s Coffee; Cameron’s Coffee and Distribution Co.; Copper Moon Coffee LLC; Cost Plus Inc.; and Pacific Coffee Inc., doing business as Maui Coffee Co. are the defendants that have settled. While other companies are involved in the claims, they have not reached settlements.

The Kona coffee farmers who filed the class action lawsuit alleged the settling defendants falsely advertised and designated coffee as originating in the Kona region, violating the Lanham Act.

The class action lawsuit accused coffee distributers, wholesalers, and retailers of wrongfully profiting off the Kona region’s reputation by “passing off ordinary commodity coffee” as being Kona coffee.

The class action lawsuit argued the coffee companies’ practices violated Kona coffee farmers by overwhelming the market with counterfeit Kona products, causing excessive supply to drive down prices. In addition, the plaintiffs said, because the counterfeit Kona products are made up of “generic commodity coffee,” consumers are misled  into thinking Kona coffee “is nothing special,” making them less likely to pay a higher price when making future purchases of authentic Kona coffee.

The settling defendants have not admitted any wrongdoing and have not been ruled against in court.

Class Members who file a valid claim form will receive a pro rata distribution payment after attorneys’ fees and other expenses are paid from the settlement fund.

In addition to the monetary relief, the settling coffee companies have agreed to change their labeling as part of the class action settlement.

Any of their current or future products labeled as being “Kona” must clearly state on the front label the minimum percentage of authentic Kona coffee beans the product contains.

Only coffee that has been graded and certified as 100 percent Kona by the Hawaii Department of Agriculture will be considered authentic Kona coffee.

Anyone who wants to exclude themselves from or object to the settlement must do so by May 5, 2021. More information on exclusions and objections is available on the settlement website.

A final hearing in the Kona coffee farmers settlement is set for June 18, 2021.

The deadline to submit a claim form has yet to be determined, but Top Class Actions is following this settlement and let you know when the date becomes available.

Were you aware not all coffee labeled “Kona” was from the Kona region? Let us know in the comment section below.

The plaintiffs are represented by Paul Richard Brown, Nathan T. Paine, and Daniel T. Hagen of Karr Tuttle Campbell; and Jason L. Lichtman, Andrew Kaufman, and Daniel E. Seltz of Lieff Cabraser Heimann & Bernstein LLP.

The Kona Coffee Farmers Class Action Lawsuit is Corker, et al. v. Costco Wholesale Corp., et al., Case No. 1:19-cv-00290, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.

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