Burger King Impossible Whopper Class Action Lawsuit Tossed

A federal judge has thrown out a class action lawsuit that alleged Burger King deceived its customers about how its Impossible Whoppers are cooked.

U.S. District Judge Raag Singhal issued the decision Monday in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Fox Business reported.

Judge Singhal said the plaintiffs failed to show reasonable consumers were deceived and thereby paid higher prices because of Burger King’s cooking methods.

Plaintiff Phillip Williams and others had alleged the plant-based patties for the Burger King Impossible Whopper were cooked on the same grill used to cook traditional hamburger patties.

Williams had sought to represent all consumers in the U.S. who had purchased a Burger King Impossible Whopper.

According to the complaint, Williams, who is a strict vegan, went through the drive-thru window and ordered a Burger King Impossible Whopper without mayonnaise. 

However, he claimed, no signage was present to inform customers that the vegan patties were grilled next to meat products, thereby possibly getting animal byproducts on the outside of the vegan burger.

Williams stated that had he known the patties were grilled together, he never would have ordered the Burger King Impossible Whopper.

“Plaintiff and other consumers purchased the Impossible Whopper, reasonably relying on defendant’s deceptive representations about the Impossible Whopper and believing that the ‘Impossible’ vegan meat patty would be prepared in a manner that maintained its qualities as a vegan (meat-free) burger patty,” the Burger King Impossible burger class action lawsuit stated.

The plaintiffs’ complaint also said Burger King was unjustly enriched by the vegan customers who had purchased Impossible Whoppers. Williams claimed thousands of vegan Burger King customers were upset by the chain’s practice of grilling the meat-free burgers alongside beef patties.

“Despite numerous reviews and consumer outrage upon learning that the Impossible Whopper was contaminated with meat by-product, Defendant kept payments from numerous consumers, including Plaintiff and the other members of the Class,” the class action lawsuit alleged.

Burger King, in turn, asked that the case be dismissed.

The company argued that it should not be accountable for customers’ confusion over or their assumptions about the vegan nature of the Burger King Impossible Whopper.

Burger King claimed ads for the product never stated the patties would be cooked separately, only that the patties themselves are meat-free and plant-based. 

According to Burger King, Williams’ allegations of fraud, breach of contract and unjust enrichment are invalid because they are based on customers’ assumptions.

The company had argued the customers’ claim of fraud was baseless because they failed to ask about how the restaurant — which is known to cook patties made of meat — cooks the Impossible Whopper.

In addition, Burger King argued, the plaintiffs should not be able to claim the company was unjustly enriched because they had not sufficiently established that it was “unjust” for the chain to keep customers’ money.

The fast-food chain argued it had advertised that the Burger King Impossible Whopper would be prepared in an “open kitchen environment,” according to the New York Post. Customers who wanted meat-free burgers also had the option of having the sandwich cooked without the broiler used to prepare beef patties, the company added.

If concerned consumers “had performed even the smallest amount of investigation, or asked a Burger King cashier, they would have leased the information they claim was uniquely material to them and thereby avoided their purported ‘damages,’” Burger King argued.

Judge Singhal ultimately agreed, saying the plaintiffs did not ask about fast-food chain’s cooking methods or request an alternative. He also said the marketing of the Burger King Impossible burger didn’t promise consumers the patties would be cooked on a separate surface.

“Burger King promised a non-meat patty and delivered,” Judge Singhal wrote. 

In addition, the judge said the plaintiffs’ claims were “too individualized” to justify certifying the case as a class action, even if it had gone forward.

Impossible Foods, which helped create the Burger King Impossible Whopper patties, says the patty was not designed for vegans or vegetarians, but rather for those who eat meat but want to consume less animal protein, according to Fox Business.

Judge Singhal has given the plaintiffs until July 27 to decide if they would like to amend their complaint.

Do you think Burger King should inform customers about how Impossible Whopper patties are grilled? Let us know in the comments.

The Burger King Impossible Whopper Class Action Lawsuit was Phillip Williams v. Burger King Corp., Case No. 1:19-cv-24755 in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

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