Blue Diamond Class Action: Wasabi Almonds Flavored With Horseradish

A class action lawsuit claims Blue Diamond “wasabi” almonds actually contain a wasabi substitute – horseradish.

Horseradish is not even closely related to the wasabi plant, alleges plaintiff Gilbert Travis Hernandez.

“Real wasabi products are in high demand and are generally expensive,” alleges the Blue Diamond Almonds class action lawsuit.

“Consequently, cheap substitutes for wasabi that are inferior to real wasabi are manufactured and sold at a price far below the price of genuine wasabi.”

Hernandez contends that wasabi substitutes are made from spicy vegetables, as well as additives to dye the substance green.

The Blue Diamond class action states that real wasabi is made from a plant native to Japan. It is made from the plant’s stem and either made fresh or ground into a paste or powder.

Blue Diamond wasabi almonds do “not contain the wasabi plant at all and so it is not a wasabi food item,” alleges the Blue Diamond wasabi almonds class action lawsuit. “The Product is flavored by horseradish.”

Blue Diamond wasabi almonds are “attractive to its target market due to its deceptive and/or materially misleading wasabi claim,” argues the Blue Diamond Almonds class action lawsuit.

Hernandez says he spent almost $8 on a package of Blue Diamond wasabi almonds under the impression that they were flavored with real wasabi.

He contends that he would not have paid as much for the nuts had he known the product was actually flavored with horseradish.

Blue Diamond’s “false and misleading wasabi claims begin with its deceptive product label and packaging,” alleges the Blue Diamond Almonds class action lawsuit. “On each and every Product package label, Defendant prominently represents that the Product is a wasabi food item.”

According to the Blue Diamond wasabi almond class action lawsuit, Hernandez and other consumers were fooled into thinking they were paying for real wasabi.

Rather than calling the product “Wasabi & Soy Sauce” claims the class action, it should have been called “imitation wasabi & soy sauce” or “horseradish & soy sauce.”

Further, most reasonable consumers would be and are deceived by imitation wasabi, alleges Hernandez, citing food experts who note that most American sushi restaurants serve “a mix of horseradish powder, mustard and green food coloring.”

The plaintiff accuses Blue Diamond of violating a host of state consumer protections laws and federal regulations with its so-called wasabi almonds.

The company has been unjustly enriched by the false advertising and the inflated prices it charges for imitation wasabi, claims the Blue Diamond class action.

The Blue Diamond wasabi almonds class action lawsuit seeks to represent a nationwide Class of consumers who purchased the nuts, along with a New York subclass.

The plaintiff is seeking damages along with a court order stopping Blue Diamond from its alleged false advertising of the wasabi almonds.

The plaintiff is represented by C.K. Lee and Anne Seelig of Lee Litigation Group PLLC.

The Blue Diamond Wasabi Almond Class Action Lawsuit is Hernandez v. Blue Diamond Growers, Case No. 1:19-cv-01467, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.