Amended Complaint Over Chobani’s Use Of Non-Vanilla Flavoring In Vanilla Yogurt Allowed To Proceed

Chobani Vanilla Yogurt Class Action Lawsuit Overview: 

• Who: A federal judge is allowing a third amended class action lawsuit filed against Chobani, Inc. by Elena Nacarino to proceed. 
• Why: Nacarino claims Chobani misleads consumers into believing its vanilla yogurt is flavored entirely from natural vanilla sources.
• Where: The lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

A federal judge in California has denied Chobani’s request to dismiss a thrice-amended class action lawsuit alleging the company misleads consumers by including non-vanilla flavoring in its vanilla yogurt.  

U.S. District Judge Edward M. Chen determined a reasonable consumer does not need to be deceived by labeling to claim Food and Drug Administration (FDA) violations. 

Chobani had argued that claims made under California’s Unfair Competition Law (UCL) should be dismissed since it would need to plausibly argue that a reasonable consumer would conclude the vanilla yogurt’s flavoring would come entirely from natural vanilla, Law360 report. 

The judge disagreed, however, ruling that, since the third amended complaint contained allegations of FDA violations, the fact he had previously determined no reasonable consumer would come to that conclusion was not relevant to the current FDA violation claims made under California’s Sherman Law. 

“The test of reliance is not inherently based on objective standard,” Chen said. “The reasonable consumer test of reliance is a requirement under the UCL’s unlawful prong only when it is an element of the predicate violation. The predicate violation here – California’s Sherman Law – does not require reliance as measured by a reasonable consumer.” 

Chobani ‘Misrepresented’ Vanilla Yogurt As Flavored All Naturally

Plaintiff Elena Nacarino originally filed a class action lawsuit against Chobani in October 2020, alleging the company’s vanilla yogurt misrepresented that it was flavored only with natural vanilla sources, Law360 reports. 

Nacarino argued the product’s container had “vanilla representations,” including the word vanilla and images of a vanilla flower and vanilla bean, which were misleading to consumers. 

When initially dismissing the majority of the claims, the judge ruled no reasonable consumer would believe the yogurt was flavored entirely from natural vanilla sources; however, the judge allowed claims made under the UCL’s unlawful prong to proceed, Law360 reports.

Chobani was targeted by a similar class action lawsuit in 2020 which alleged the company misled consumers by using artificial flavoring in its vanilla coffee creamer. 

Have you purchased Chobani vanilla yogurt? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiff is represented by Sue Jung Nam of Reese LLP.

The Chobani Vanilla Yogurt All Natural Class Action Lawsuit is Nacarino v. Chobani, LLC, Case No. 3:20-cv-07437, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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