Barilla “made in Italy’ lawsuit gets class certification

Update: 

• A federal judge in California certified a class action lawsuit filed against Barilla America Inc. over claims the company falsely labels its pasta as made in Italy. 
• Barilla, in opposing class certification, argued the proposed class was not properly defined and said it removed the labeling from 34 out of 54 of its products. 
• The judge called Barilla’s argument against class certification meritless and ruled the proposed class definition was not overbroad.
• The judge previously denied Barilla’s motion to dismiss the class action lawsuit, ruling in October 2022 the plaintiffs had standing to sue the company. 
• A pair of consumers claim Barilla intentionally aims to deceive consumers into believing its pasta products are made in Italy when the product is allegedly produced in Iowa and New York. 

Barilla class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: A judge denied Barilla America Inc.’s motion to dismiss a class action lawsuit that alleges the company falsely advertises its pasta as being made in Italy.
• Why: The judge found that plaintiffs Matthew Sinatro and Jessica Prost have standing to sue Barilla and that their complaint sufficiently stated a claim.
• Where: The Barilla class action lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

(Oct. 19, 2022)

Last week, a California judge denied a bid by Barilla America Inc. to dismiss a class action lawsuit that alleges it falsely advertises its pasta as being made in Italy.

U.S. Magistrate Judge Donna M. Ryu disagreed with Barilla that plaintiffs Matthew Sinatro and Jessica Prost lacked standing to sue and found that their Barilla class action lawsuit stated a claim upon which relief could be granted.

The judge dismissed the plaintiffs’ claim for injunctive relief because she found that they did not establish that they would be injured again by the Barilla made in Italy representations.

Barilla class action says pasta ingredients are sourced outside of Italy

Sinatro and Prost take issue with Barilla’s labeling of its pastas as “ITALY’S #1 BRAND OF PASTA.” They claim that consumers are willing to pay a premium for products that seem to be authentic Italian products.

The Barilla class action lawsuit says that Italian pasta is one of the most sought after products globally and that Italian durum wheat is among the most desirable wheat varieties. However, Italy’s production of durum wheat cannot meet global demand, leaving companies scrambling to make and sell pasta products purportedly made from Italian durum wheat, the lawsuit states.

Barilla allegedly misleadingly labels its products as “ITALY’S #1 BRAND OF PASTA” to deliberately mislead consumers into thinking their products are made in Italy from ingredients that are sourced in Italy, the Barilla class action states.

However, Barilla pasta products sold in the United States are actually made in Iowa and New York, and their ingredients are sourced from countries other than Italy, the Barilla class action lawsuit alleges.

The judge determined that the plaintiffs had standing to challenge Barilla pasta products that they did not purchase because the Barilla made in Italy statement is present on all of the products named in the complaint.

Last year, Barilla faced a class action lawsuit alleging it mislabeled its pasta sauces as having “no preservatives” even though they contain the preservative citric acid.

Did you buy Barilla pasta because you believed that it was made in Italy? Tell us what you think of the Barilla class action lawsuit in the comments!

Sinatro and Prost represented by Ryan J. Clarkson, Shireen M. Clarkson, Katherine A. Bruce and Kelsey J. Elling of Clarkson Law Firm PC.

The Barilla made in Italy class action lawsuit is Matthew Sinatro, et al. v. Barilla America Inc., Case No. 4:22-cv-03460, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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