McCormick class action claims El Guapo New Mexico chile pods not actually from state

McCormick class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Plaintiff Joseph Salvaggio has filed a class action lawsuit against McCormick & Company Inc.
• Why: McCormick allegedly misrepresents its El Guapo brand New Mexico chile pods as being “authentic” when they are not actually produced in the state.
• Where: 

McCormick & Company Inc. sells El Guapo brand “New Mexico Chile Pods” that are not actually grown in New Mexico despite representations on the label declaring the product as “authentic,” a class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiff Joseph Salvaggio filed the McCormick class action lawsuit June 18, claiming he purchased El Guapo New Mexico Chile Pods after reading the label describing the product as “authentic” and “The Original and Preferred For More Than 30 Years.” 

He says he relied on the representations and believed that the product included authentic New Mexico chile pods that were connected in a meaningful way to New Mexico.

The McCormick class action lawsuit describes New Mexico chile as a specific cultivar of chili peppers (Capsicum annuum “New Mexico Group”) that have been grown in New Mexico for more than 400 years.

“This crop has thrived because of the high altitude, desert climate, and rocky, mineral-rich soil, which provides distinct flavors and/or critical nutrients, unlike chili peppers grown elsewhere in the world,” the McCormick class action lawsuit explains.

The New Mexico chile industry employs more than 5,000 residents and puts “upwards of a billion dollars into state coffers,” Salvaggio says.

However, the number of acres devoted to New Mexico chile has reportedly decreased by more than 70% in the last three decades. The biggest threat to New Mexico chile production has been lower-priced imports of products from China, India, and Mexico, the McCormick class action lawsuit says.

El Guapo New Mexico Chile Pods do not include certified label of authenticity, McCormick class action says

To protect its chile industry, the New Mexico legislature enacted the New Mexico Chile Advertising Act in 2011, which requires companies selling chile peppers that are purportedly from New Mexico to verify the products’ origins and undergo examinations for quality. The NMCA created an authenticity mark as an easy way to inform consumers of products that meet the quality standards.

The El Guapo New Mexico chile product contains a seal on the front label, but Salvaggio says it is merely a self-designated claim that the product is “authentic.” He also notes that neither El Guapo nor McCormick are registered as licenses with the NMCA.

The McCormick class action lawsuit asserts claims for violations of New York General Business Law, violations of various state consumer fraud acts, breach of warranty, fraud, and unjust enrichment.

A Badia chile class action lawsuit also claims the product is not from New Mexico as advertised.

Have you purchased New Mexico chile products because they were advertised as “authentic”? Tell us what you think of this McCormick class action lawsuit in the comments!

Salvaggio is represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC and James Chung of James Chung Office of Law.

The McCormick New Mexico chile class action lawsuit is Joseph Salvaggio, et al. v. McCormick & Co. Inc., Case No. 6:23-cv-06334, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of New York, Rochester Division.

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