Clorox Class Action Says Green Works Cleaners Aren’t Really ‘Natural’

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Green Works cleaning products are mislabeled to make consumers think they contain all-natural ingredients, say two plaintiffs in a recent class action lawsuit.

Plaintiffs Joseph Gregorio and Patrick Quiroz allege that defendant The Clorox Company is taking advantage of market interest in all-natural products to make consumers purchase cleaners they wouldn’t buy if they knew what was really in them.

Clorox markets a line of cleaning products known as Green Works, labeled as being “naturally derived.” In fact, the plaintiffs claim, Green Works products contain ingredients that are “synthetic, non-natural and highly chemically processed.”

The plaintiffs name about a dozen specific products in the Green Works line that are allegedly mislabeled. The list includes Green Works laundry detergents, dishwashing liquids, toilet bowl cleaner, disposable wipes and multi-purpose cleaners.

In this Green Works class action lawsuit, the plaintiffs include images of some of the labeling at issue. The packaging for a canister of Green Works cleaning wipes and a bottle of dishwashing liquid both show the words “naturally derived” on the front.

The rear labels say users of the products can expect “Powerful cleaning done naturally.” Most of the packaging is green in color, and it shows pictures of a flower and a green leaf.

Gregorio and Quiroz say this labeling misrepresents the nature of certain ingredients in Green Works products that no reasonable consumer would consider “natural.”

Among the ingredients the plaintiffs take issue with is boric acid, a compound that sees use in other products as an insecticide, antiseptic, or flame retardant. Calcium chloride is a chemical preservative used for deicing roads, the plaintiffs say.

Other allegedly synthetic ingredients making an appearance on Green Works ingredient lists include lauryl glucoside, methylisothiazolinone, sodium lauryl sulfate, and Liquitint dyes – artificial colorants made by Milliken Chemica.

Both Gregorio and Quiroz say they purchased Green Works Naturally Derived products earlier this year, from stores in New York and California, respectively.

The plaintiffs say they were in the market for natural cleaning products, and the labeling on Green Works products that described them as “naturally derived” inclined them to choose those products. If they had known those representations were false, they claim, they either would not have bought the products or would have been willing to pay substantially less for them.

The plaintiffs are proposing to bring this Green Works class action lawsuit on behalf of all persons in the U.S. who purchased Green Works products. They also propose subclasses of plaintiffs from their respective home states of California and New York.

They seek an award of compensatory, statutory and punitive damages, restitution, court costs and attorney’s fees, all with pre-judgment interest. They are also asking the court to order defendant Clorox to undertake a corrective advertising campaign.

Gregorio and Quiroz are represented by L. Timothy Fisher and Scott A. Bursor of Bursor & Fisher PA.

The Green Works Natural Products Mislabeling Class Action Lawsuit is Joseph Gregorio and Patrick Quiroz v. The Clorox Company, Case No. 3:17-cv-03824, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

UPDATE: On Jan. 31, 2018, Clorox filed a motion to dismiss class action claims that it labels Green Works products deceptively, to make consumers think the products contain only natural ingredients.