Price Chopper Class Action Lawsuit Says Ice Cream Lacks Vanilla

Price Chopper faces a class action lawsuit from consumers contending that the company’s vanilla ice cream is misleadingly labeled.

According to plaintiffs Luke Magnuson and Laura Vitaliani, Price Chopper’s PICS brand Vanilla Bean Ice Cream fails to disclose the presence of artificial flavoring. As a result, consumers are allegedly misled into believing that the ice cream is made with real vanilla and therefore worth more money.

PICS vanilla ice cream is reportedly sold in 1.5 quart containers with label representations including “Vanilla Bean,” “Vanilla Bean Ice Cream,” an amber color pattern which the plaintiffs say is “evocative of vanilla,” and two scoops of the product with noticeable “vanilla bean specks.” Nowhere on the label does Price Chopper disclose the presence of added flavorings, according to the plaintiffs.

“The Product’s front label does not state ‘contains some vanilla’ or ‘made with a drop of vanilla,’ but designates the characterizing flavor as ‘Vanilla’ without qualifying terms,” the Price Chopper vanilla ice cream class action lawsuit notes.

Unfortunately, according to the product’s ingredient list, the vanilla flavoring in the ice cream is reportedly reinforced with “natural flavor.” This is allegedly listed higher on the product list than “ground vanilla beans.”

The plaintiffs argue that, when it comes to vanilla products, “natural flavor” indicates that the products contain both real vanilla and added vanillin flavorings.

The consumers note that, if “natural flavors” only included pure vanilla ingredients like vanilla extract, this would be listed on the ingredient list.

As it stands, Price Chopper vanilla ice cream allegedly fails to disclose the presence of added flavors which reinforce the characterizing vanilla flavor.

To comply with federal labeling standards, the product should reportedly be labeled as “Vanilla Bean Flavored Ice Cream” or “Vanilla with Other Natural Flavors.”

Because the labeling doesn’t include this disclosure, consumers like the plaintiffs say they were misled by Price Chopper’s other representations.

“The representations are misleading because the Product contains artificial, non-vanilla flavors not disclosed to consumers, less vanilla than consumers expect and the vanilla bean specks only give the illusion of more vanilla but do not contribute any vanilla taste,” the Price Chopper vanilla ice cream class action lawsuit contends.

The plaintiffs note that many consumers are starting to lean towards more natural products which don’t contain added flavorings. In fact, the plaintiffs cite several surveys which found that between 62 – 76% of consumers try to avoid artificial flavorings when shopping for food products.

Because natural or genuine flavorings cost so much more than artificial flavorings – especially vanilla which is one of the most expensive ingredients in food – consumers are allegedly willing to pay more for non-artificially flavored products.

Unfortunately, if brands use misleading advertisements to represent their products, consumers may be duped into paying a higher price than they should. The plaintiffs argue that this is exactly what happened with Price Chopper vanilla ice cream.

According to the plaintiffs, consumers would not have purchased the products or would have paid significantly less if they knew the truth about the product’s flavoring. However, the packaging on the Price Chopper ice cream is allegedly so misleading that consumers are unable to successfully learn the truth about the product through the confusing representations and ingredients list.

“A reasonable consumer cannot follow up or learn the truth that the Product contains non-vanilla artificial flavors, from reading the Product’s ingredient list because defendant labels the flavor as ‘Natural Flavor’ and fails to provide clarification elsewhere on the Product,” the plaintiffs argue in their Price Chopper vanilla ice cream class action lawsuit. They also make similar claims surrounding the ingredient list’s inclusion of “ground vanilla beans,” calling this ingredient misleading.

The Price Chopper ice cream class action lawsuit includes claims of negligent misrepresentation, breach of warranties, violation of the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, fraud, unjust enrichment, and violations of consumer protection laws.

The plaintiffs seek to represent a Class of consumers who purchased Price Chopper ice cream in Massachusetts and/or New York. On behalf of themselves and the proposed Class, the plaintiffs seek monetary damages, restitution, disgorgement, interest, injunctive relief, court costs, and attorneys’ fees.

Did you purchase Price Chopper ice cream? Did you think the products were made with real vanilla? Share your experiences in the comment section below.

The plaintiffs and proposed Class Members are represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC and Peter N. Wasylyk of the Law Offices of Peter N. Wasylyk.

The Price Chopper Ice Cream Class Action Lawsuit is Luke Magnuson, et al. v. The Price Chopper Inc., Case No. 7:20-cv-07497, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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