Maille Class Action Says Mustard Is Made In Canada, Not Paris

Unilever United States Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit from consumers who claim that its “Maille” brand of mustard appears to be made in France, but is in fact, made in Canada.

Plaintiff Dennis Culver claims that Unilever deceives consumers into thinking that their mustard comes from France by labeling the product with French words, along with a Paris emblem.  

The plaintiff says he purchased Maille Old Style Mustard and Maille Traditional Dijon Originale Mustard in 2018 and 2019 based on the appearances of being made in France.

The Maille mustard class action lawsuit states that the plaintiff would not have purchased the product, or would have paid less, had he known that the mustard was made in Canada.

The Maille mustard class action lawsuit claims that the label of the Maille Old Style Mustard has the following on it: “Paris,” a Paris emblem, “Depuis 1747,” and “Que Maille.”

“Based on these representations, consumers reasonably believe the Products are made in France,” the Maille mustard class action lawsuit states.

The plaintiff points to a survey performed by a market research company which confirmed that customers are being deceived by the defendant. Culver alleges that the survey asked the question: “Based on the label of the product, where do you believe the product is made?” The Maille class action claims that 63 percent chose France as the location where they thought the mustard was made.

“Defendant’s conduct harms consumers by inducing them to purchase the Products at a premium price on the false premise that the Products are made in France (as they are in fact made in Canada), when the consumers would not have otherwise purchased the Products, or would have paid substantially less for them had they known the truth,” the Maille class action lawsuit asserts.

The plaintiff states that if he knew that the mustard labels were truthful and not misleading, he would continue to purchase the product in the future.

The Maille mustard class action lawsuit asserts that the defendant knows or should have known that the plaintiff would rely on the labeling, packaging, and advertising and would reasonably think that the mustard was made in France.

The Maille dijon mustard class action lawsuit states, “Consumer research has demonstrated that representations regarding geographic origin of a product have a direct effect on product evaluations by consumers, especially regarding the quality of the product.”

The plaintiff claims that by purchasing the products, he suffered injury and lost money due to the defendant’s unfair and fraudulent practices.

In addition, the plaintiff claims that as a result of its misleading practices, the defendant should be stopped from deceptively representing that the mustard is made in France.

The plaintiff claims that the defendant violated the California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, California False Advertising Law, California Unfair Competition Law, breach of quasi-contract, and unjust enrichment.

Proposed Class Members include: “All California consumers who purchased one or more of the Products primarily for personal, family, or household purposes during the period from April 4, 2015, to the date of class certification.”

Did you buy Unilever’s Maille brand of mustard? Leave a message in the comments section below.

The plaintiff is represented by Benjamin Heikali and Joshua Nassir of Faruqi & Faruqi LLP and Michael R. Reese, Sue J. Nam, and George V. Granade of Reese LLP.

The Maille Mustard Class Action Lawsuit is Culver v. Unilever United States Inc., Case No. 2:19-cv-09263, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, Western Division.

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