$5.4M Ocean Spray ‘No Artificial Flavors’ Class Action Settlement Reached

UPDATE 3: On Oct. 28, 2020, Top Class Actions viewers started receiving payments from the Ocean Spray class action settlement worth $17.40. Congratulations to everyone who filed a claim and got PAID!

UPDATE 2: February 2020, the Ocean Spray artificial flavors class action settlement is now open. Click here to file a claim. 

UPDATE: February 2020, a website has been established that informs Class Members of their rights under an Ocean Spray artificial flavoring class action settlement.

An Ocean Spray class action lawsuit may be resolved by a recent $5.4 million settlement, ending claims that the company’s CranApple and CranGrape beverages are falsely advertised as having “no artificial flavors.”

Plaintiffs in the Ocean Spray class action are asking U.S. District Judge Gonzalo P. Curiel to give preliminary approval to the deal. The consumers claim that the settlement is fair and would resolve years of litigation.

“If approved, the settlement will bring an end to what has been, and likely would continue to be, highly contentious and costly litigation centered upon unsettled legal questions,” the Ocean Spray class action settlement states.

The proposed settlement would benefit all consumers who have purchased Ocean Spray products since 2011.

Under the settlement, Class Members could file a claim and receive $1 for each eligible bottle of Ocean Spray juice that they purchased. Households would reportedly be limited to a recovery of $20.

Ocean Spray products covered in the settlement include: Ocean Spray CranApple, CranGrape, “100% Apple” Juice Drink, CranRaspberry, Wave Apple with White Cranberries, Wave Berry Medley, CranCherry, CranPineapple, CranPomegranate, Diet CranPomegranate, Diet CranCherry and Cranberry Cherry Flavor 100% Juice.

In addition to providing monetary payouts to Class Members, the settlement would also require Ocean Spray to make changes to their advertising. Ocean Spray would reportedly promise to stop using “no artificial flavors” labels on products that contain artificial flavorings. However, Ocean Spray has not admitted any wrongdoing.

Plaintiff Crystal Hilsley filed her Ocean Spray class action lawsuit in November 2017. She claimed that the company wrongfully labeled some of their juice products as containing “no high fructose corn syrup, artificial colors, or flavors.”

Despite these representations, some Ocean Spray juice beverages allegedly contained malic acid – a synthetic chemical reportedly manufactured in petrochemical factories. Although there is a natural version of malic acid, the Ocean Spray class action claimed that the juice contained the synthetic version called “dl-malic acid.”

Other beverages allegedly contained fumaric acid. Although the natural version of this chemical can be found in grapes, Ocean Spray allegedly used the synthetic version which was produced in petrochemical factories like malic acid.

Hilsley argued that she and other consumers paid a premium price for Ocean Spray juices based on the false representations – causing them financial injury when they reportedly did not get what they paid for.

In December 2018, Hilsley’s Ocean Spray class action secured a win when Judge Curiel awarded partial Class certification under several California laws including the state’s Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and Consumer Legal Remedies Act.

Although Judge Curiel did not certify the Class for breach of warranty claims, the certified Class still included thousands of consumers who purchased certain Ocean Spray beverages since January 2011.

Ocean Spray reportedly attempted to dispute the partial Class certification but Judge Curiel shot down these attempts.

Top Class Actions will post updates to this class action settlement as they become available. For the latest updates, keep checking TopClassActions.com or sign up for our free newsletter. You can also receive notifications when this article is updated by using your free Top Class Actions account and clicking the “Follow Article” button at the top of the post.

Did you purchase Ocean Spray juice beverages that were labeled as containing “no artificial flavors?” Let us know what you think of this settlement in the comment section below.

Plaintiffs and the proposed settlement Class Members are represented by Ronald A. Marron, Lilach Halperin, and Michael T. Houchin of the Law Offices of Ronald A. Marron and by David Elliot.

The Ocean Spray Class Action Lawsuit is Hilsley, et al. v. Ocean Spray Cranberries Inc., et al., Case No. 3:17-cv-02335, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

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