Brad’s Plant Based class action alleges company falsely advertises kale chip protein amount

Brad’s Plant Based kale chips class action overview: 

• Who: A kale chip consumer is suing Brad’s Plant Based.
• Why: The plaintiff says the company overstates the level of protein in its chips and crackers.
• Where: The Brad’s Plant Based kale chips was filed in a California federal court.

Brad’s Plant Based deceives customers about the high levels of protein in its kale chips and crackers, with only a percentage of that protein able to be absorbed by the body, a new class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiff Jose Luna filed the class action lawsuit against Brad’s Plant Based on March 1 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws. 

His lawsuit targets a range of Brad’s products, including several flavors of kale chips, as well as crackers made of sweet potato, red bell pepper and broccoli.

According to the complaint, Brad’s advertises on its packaging the specific amounts of protein its products contain per bag, for example stating “8g PROTEIN PER BAG” on the front label of its Crunchy Kale (Naked) product.   

However, the ingredients that make up the protein in the products are actually “low quality proteins” that cannot fully be absorbed by the human body, thus rendering their protein-load smaller than advertised, the class action alleges.

The protein in Brad’s products is typically made up of kale, sunflower seed and chickpea proteins, Luna states. The company’s packaging should reflect that, at most, only 85% of the protein in those ingredients can actually be digested and absorbed by the body, he claims. 

FDA regulates against false protein claims, lawsuit states

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) acknowledges different sources of protein are more easily digested than others, so requires companies to advertise based on the amount of protein in their product that can actually be absorbed by the human body, Luna says.

He says many Brad’s Plant Based veggie chips products fail to calculate the “corrected amount of protein per serving,” as per FDA requirements. 

He seeks to represent a class of people in the United States who purchased Brad’s Plant Based products. 

Luna is suing for violations of FDA rules, California’s Sherman Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Law and Pennsylvania’s Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.

He seeks certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial. 

Meanwhile, consumers have filed several class action lawsuits this year accusing companies of falsely advertising the protein content of their products.

Did you buy Brad’s products due to their protein content? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by J. Ryan Gustafson of Good Gustafson Aumais LLP, Amir Shenaq and Steffan T. Keeton.

The Brad’s class action lawsuit is Jose Luna, et al. v. Brad’s Raw Chips LLC, Case No. 3:23-cv-00926, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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