Kashi GMO Mislabeling Class Action Settlement Gets Initial OK

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On Sept. 4, a proposed $4 million Kashi GMO false ad class action settlement was given preliminary approval by a Florida federal judge, who also granted Class certification to a group of consumers who allege they were misled by Kashi Co.’s false advertising.

The proposed settlement agreement would resolve claims that Kashi falsely labeled some of their products that allegedly contained genetically modified organisms (GMOs) as “all natural,” in order to persuade consumers into buying their food products.

U.S. District Judge Joan A. Lenard scheduled the final approval hearing for this Kashi class action settlement for Jan. 27, 2016. The judge also signed off on the proposed procedure for notifying the Class Members of the class action settlement and the method by which eligible individuals can participate in the Kashi settlement.

The approval of this GMO false ad class action settlement would bring to a close to a three-year long litigation process. During this time, the defendants attempted to dismiss the Kashi class action lawsuit three times and Judge Lenard trimmed some class claims. Despite these setbacks, the Kashi GMO false ad class action lawsuit survived litigation and resulted in a settlement for consumers.

Kellogg Co.’s Kashi unit announced the proposed false ad class action settlement in June of this year, agreeing to reimburse Class Members who provide receipts as proof of purchase of Kashi GOLEAN Crunch! cereals or other Kashi food products. Class Members who do not have receipts will be reimbursed up to $27.50. In addition to the monetary compensation for Class Members, Kashi has agreed to change labeling practices for their food and snack products, and will remove the “all-natural” claims from Kashi products containing the ingredients challenged in the GMO class action lawsuit.

The payouts for Class Members will vary depending on the number of valid claims made by Class Members, but Kashi will not pay less than $2 million to the settlement Class. The food product company has also agreed to pay $1.5 million in attorneys’ fees.

The Kashi false ad class action settlement notice will run in two print magazines, Food Network Magazine and Prevention Magazine, as well as certain websites and online advertisements to reach other Class Members. Furthermore, the Kashi class action lawsuit states a detailed settlement website will be established along with an 800 number for Class Members to contact.

It is important to note that California consumers are excluded from the Kashi GMO false ad class action settlement, as Kashi reached a similar settlement agreement in July 2014 for a California Kashi class action settlement for $5 million. However, plaintiffs of this recent Kashi class action settlement stated that their per-person recovery is great than the relief provided to the California consumers.

The plaintiffs are represented by Howard W. Rubinstein, Michael T. Fraser and Benjamin M. Lopatin of The Law Offices of Howard W. Rubinstein, Angela Arango-Chaffin and Robert A. Chaffin of The Chaffin Law Firm, L. Dewayne Layfield of Law Office of L. Dewayne Layfield and Mark A. Milstein, Gillian L. Wade and Sara D. Avilaa of Milstein Adelman LLP.

The Kashi GMO False Ad Class Action Lawsuit is Eggnatz, et al. v. The Kellogg Company, et al., Case No. 1:12-cv-21678, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.

UPDATE: On July 30, 2016, Top Class Actions viewers who submitted timely and valid claims for the Kashi settlement started receiving checks worth as much as $45.60!