Protein Spiking Lawsuit Accuses Core Formulations of False Advertising

By Sarah Markley | February 23, 2017

Category: Consumer News

whey protein powder Consumers who purchase protein supplement products expect to be able to trust the nutrition label, however some manufacturers have recently been accused of protein spiking.

A Los Angeles man is filing a proposed class action protein spiking lawsuit against Core Formulation claiming that their Core 8 product does not contain the amount of protein that it claims on the label.

Protein Spiking Lawsuit Alleges False Advertising, Other Claims

Plaintiff Bernardo Deleon claims that Core Formulation deliberately altered the makeup of their Core 8 product by adding things to their product that falsely increased the protein readings.

Some protein supplement manufacturers, including Core Formulation, Deleon claims, engage in something known as “protein spiking.”

Protein spiking is when amino acids or other additives are added to a protein supplement so that it seems as if it has higher protein content than it actually does.

Deleon alleges that Core Formulation not only engaged in protein spiking but that they knew or should have known that their product did not contain the stated amount of protein and that they misrepresented the protein amount to the public.

This protein spiking proposed class action lawsuit claims that because of this misrepresentation and omission of important information from the label, this makes their protein product defective.

He believes that neither himself nor others in the proposed Class would have purchased the product had they known of the defect.

According to Deleon, Core Formulation emphasizes on their label the nature and source of their protein. Their label indicates that “Core Formulation uses only the purest, highest quality proteins available.”

It also says, “Our proteins are sourced from the highest quality cows and made from fresh sweet dairy whey, are 100% gluten free and produced without GMOs.”

The lawsuit claims that the labels of the Core Formulation products also note on their label, “No protein spiking! No useless amino spikes like ‘Amino Acid Complex’ or ‘Taurine.’ Only 100% whey protein.”

However, according to protein tests that were done on some of the Core products, the actual protein amount was far lower than the label said.

For example, the label of the Core Formulation Core 8 Chocolate Brownie flavored product claims that it contains 30 grams of protein per serving. The actual tests done found that the product only contained 21 grams of protein per serving.

The plaintiff believes that the defendant participated in protein spiking to maximize profits by misrepresenting the true nature of their products.

He says that the amount of protein claimed to be in the product is heavily promoted and emphasized on the product labeling with the intent that customers would rely on the labeling for their information.

Deleon brings several causes of action against the defendants including violation of California’s false advertising law, violation of the consumers’ legal remedies act, unlawful, fraudulent and unfair business practices, breach of express warranty, negligent misrepresentation and conspiracy to commit fraud.

The Protein Spiking Class Action Lawsuit is Bernardo Deleon v. Michael Santana, et al., Case No. BC611621 in the Superior Court of the State of California for the County of Los Angeles.