Victoria Fine Foods Class Action Alleges Deceptive ‘Natural’ Labeling

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Pasta sauce manufacturer Victoria Fine Foods has been hit with a putative class action lawsuit over allegations that the “All Natural” and “No Preservatives” label claims are misleading to consumers.

Lead plaintiff Ulyana Shmidt of New York says she paid $6.99 for a jar of Victoria’s Premium Vodka Sauce because was willing to pay more for a “natural” product. However, the Victoria class action lawsuit claims that the sauce contains citric acid which is not a natural preservative.

Shmidt alleges that while the preservative contains the word “citric,” it is actually a synthetic, non-natural, chemically processed ingredient. The Victoria vodka sauce class action lawsuit states that citric acid is manufactured by fermenting certain genetically mutant strains of the black mold fungus, Aspergillusniger.

The Victoria false labeling class action lawsuit claims that the pasta sauce manufacturer took advantage of customers who are willing to spend extra for a “natural” food item.

“Defendant profited in this lucrative market for natural foods by misleadingly labeling the Product as containing ‘No Preservatives’ and selling them to consumers who sought to purchase products made from ingredients that are naturally occurring and who were willing to pay more for such foods,” the class action states.

In addition to the vodka sauce label, Shmidt claims that the official Victoria website further misleads customers by displaying the entire collection of pasta sauce product line with a full list of ingredients in each product. The Victoria lawsuit claims that the image on the product’s website “demonstrates that it is meant to be ‘All Natural’ and contain ‘No Preservatives.’”

Shmidt acknowledges in the Victoria “all natural” class action lawsuit that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has yet to ultimately define what constitutes as natural. However, she points to a FDA loose definition of the term which states that the product “does not contain added color, artificial flavors, or synthetic substances.”

Shmidt, along with plaintiffs John Does 1-100, have accused Victoria Fine Foods of unjust enrichment, negligent misrepresentation, breach of express warranties, violations of New York’s General Business Law, and other violations of consumer protection statutes in all 50 states and the District of Columbia.

The Victoria class action lawsuit is seeking more than $5 million in financial restitution for potential Class Members.

If approved, the Victoria Premium Vodka Sauce class action lawsuit would be open to all U.S. Class Members who purchased the product within a reasonable Class Period. Shmidt is also requesting to represent a New York state subclass who made retail purchases of the vodka sauce.

Shmidt and the proposed Class is represented by C.K. Lee and Anne Seelig of Lee Litigation Group in New York City.

The Victoria Premium Vodka Sauce False Labeling Class Action Lawsuit is Ulyana Shmidt et al., v. Victoria Fine Foods LLC, Case No. 1:16-CV-00230-ILG-MDG in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.