Honey Bunches of Oats Class Action Says Cereal Sweetened With Sugar, Corn Syrup

A class action lawsuit claims that Post intentionally misleads consumers into believing that its Honey Bunches of Oats cereals are sweetened with honey when the majority of the sweetness comes from other sources.

Honey Bunches of Oats, a popular cereal manufactured by Post Consumer Brands, allegedly takes advantage of honey’s reputation in their marketing.

The name itself hints at honey content in the product and marketing for the cereal reportedly uses a honey dipper covered in honey and bee imagery to reinforce the association.

Despite the prominent honey imagery which hints that honey is the primary sweetener in the cereal, Honey Bunches of Oats primarily uses other sweeteners according to the class action lawsuit.

Plaintiff Peter Tucker claims that Honey Bunches of Oats uses sugar, brown sugar, corn syrup, malted barley syrup, and molasses to sweeten their products. In the many Honey Bunches of Oats varieties, all of these sweeteners allegedly come before honey on the ingredients list.

“The deception is compounded by the fact that there is no prominent language or other indication on the packaging that sugar and other refined substances are the primary sweeteners or, indeed, that they are present at all,” the Honey Bunches of Oats class action claims.

Sugar is expressly linked to various health problems including obesity, type 2 diabetes, metabolic syndromes, heart disease, and more. In a world where sugar reduction is becoming more and more popular, alternative sweeteners are becoming more popular and are increase valued by consumers looking to make healthy changes in their lives.

Honey is one alternative sweetener that is gaining popularity. The bee byproduct contains vitamins, minerals, enzymes, and antioxidants that sugar lacks and has a lower glycemic index than sugar. This means that honey causes slower spikes in blood glucose than those caused by sugar intake. Although honey is still high in sugar content, consumers consider honey to be a more natural sweetener and better for their health than pure sugar.

“The branding and packaging of the Products convey the clear message that honey is the primary sweetener or – at a minimum – that honey is a significant sweetener compared to sugar and other refined substances that are perceived by consumers to be unhealthy or less healthy,” the Honey Bunches of Oats class action claims. “Unfortunately for consumers, this message is simply untrue.”

Tucker seeks to represent a Class of consumers from California who purchased Honey Bunches of Oats products on or after June 13, 2015.

The Honey Bunches of Oats class action lawsuit seeks injunctive relief, monetary relief, interest, court costs, and attorneys’ fees.

Tucker and the proposed Class are represented by Michael R. Reese and George V. Granade of Reese LLP, and Kenneth D. Quat of Quat Law Offices.

The Honey Bunches of Oats Class Action Lawsuit is Tucker v. Post Consumer Brands LLC, Case No. 4:19-cv-03993-KAW, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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