Walgreens’ Multivitamins Misleading on Gelatin, Class Action Lawsuit Says

A new class action lawsuit claims Walgreens’ multivitamins for women contain gelatin despite their labeling, which suggests otherwise.

Plaintiff Sunita Kanwar of New York says Walgreens multivitamins go so far as to mislead consumers into thinking the vitamins don’t have gelatin in them by urging shoppers to compare them to similar women’s vitamins that list gelatin among their ingredients.

Since no gelatin is listed among the ingredients on the Walgreens’ vitamins, consumers are likely to think they are unique and preferable, the class action lawsuit states.

Kanwar claims the company’s practices amount to breach of contract and unjust enrichment and violate New York’s general business laws.

“Walgreen has engaged in this marketing campaign to convince potential customers that the product is a gelatin free alternative … by expressly stating that the product should be compared to Centrum Women on the label and on the website, by using the same color scheme to identify the vitamin, and by not listing the use of gelatin on the label of the product or on the website,” the class action lawsuit says.

Kanwar is allergic to gelatin and has suffered allergic reactions to the Walgreens multivitamins, according to her class action lawsuit. She is also opposed to consuming gelatin for religious reasons, she said.

Gelatin is made from animal collagen, a protein that is usually derived from cows and pigs.

Allergic reactions to gelatin can include swelling of the lips, tongue and throat; hives or rash; or gastrointestinal problems, including nausea, vomiting and diarrhea.

The Walgreens class action lawsuit notes the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires gelatin to be included in the list of ingredients or among the “supplemental facts” disclosed on a package of dietary supplements if it is, in fact, contained in the product.

Walgreens has “systematically mislabeled” its multivitamins for women, which led Kanwar and others to purchase them over other multivitamins, the class action lawsuit says.

Those purchases, made under false pretenses, caused the consumers real financial harm, if not actual harm in the form of allergic reactions to the gelatin, the class action lawsuit claims.

Kanwar says Walgreens should be held accountable for that harm and be legally required to compensate the proposed Class Members for it. Kanwar also wants the court to require Walgreens to list gelatin on the ingredients list of all multivitamins that contain it.

The plaintiff and her legal team are seeking the court’s certification and permission to represent a nationwide Class of consumers who, like Kanwar, purchased the women’s-formula Walgreens multivitamins thinking they were gelatin-free.

According to the legal filing, Kanwar’s attorneys estimate there could be millions of eligible Class Members.

Have you purchased a bottle of Walgreens’ multivitamins for women thinking they were a gelatin-free alternative to other, similar women’s vitamins? Would you have purchased them if you knew they contained gelatin? Tell us about it in the comment section below.

Lead plaintiff Kanwar and the proposed Class Members are represented by Anil Dass of The Law Offices of Anil Dass.

The Walgreens Multivitamin Class Action Lawsuit is Sunita Kanwar, et al. v. Walgreen Co., Case No. 1:20-cv-06256, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

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