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Four New York consumers have filed a proposed class action lawsuit against the maker of Barilla pasta, claiming the company deceptively under-fills boxes of certain pasta products.
Plaintiffs Alessandro Berni, Giuseppe Santochirico, Domenico Salvati, and Massimo Simioli claim that Barilla substantially under-fills the boxes of its brands marketed as healthier options and are labeled as “Gluten Free,” “Whole Grain,” “ProteinPLUS,” and “White Fiber,” among others.
According to the complaint, Barilla packages these specialized pastas in what appears to be the same-sized boxes as its iconic blue box standard pasta products.
For example, the standard “enriched macaroni product” version of elbow pasta is sold one-pound (454 grams) per box. However, ProteinPLUS elbows are sold 14.5 ounces (411 grams) per box and the Whole Grain elbows are sold 13.2 ounces (375 grams) per box.
The plaintiffs allege that Barilla continues to sell all three types of elbow pasta in boxes that appear to be the same size when displayed on the shelf of a supermarket and contend that Barilla also uses this deceptive practice when selling other shapes of pasta such as spaghetti, penne, and shells.
Berni says that on at least one occasion in 2016, he purchased a 12-ounce (340 gram) of Gluten Free penne and other Barilla Whole Grain pastas.
The plaintiff claims he had a reasonable expectation that these boxes were full of pasta and was unaware that, in fact, the Gluten Free pasta contained approximately 25 percent less pasta and the Whole Grain pasta contained 17 percent less than they were allegedly designed to hold.
Similarly, plaintiffs Salvati, Simioli, and Santochirico assert that as a result of Barilla’s deceptive packaging, they were overcharged.
“By using the traditional-sized boxes that have been recognized in the consumer marketplace for many years, but under-filling them, Barilla deceptively misleads consumers into thinking that they are purchasing the same quantities of pasta as they had historically when they purchased the standard ‘enriched macaroni product’ version,” the Barilla class action lawsuit states.
While the Barilla lawsuit concedes that the boxes do identify the new reduced net weight in small print at the bottom of the box, consumers are not otherwise informed of this material change in the quantity of pasta inside or that the boxes are substantially underfilled, with Barilla unfairly capitalizing on the market for health-conscious products, the lawsuit states.
The plaintiffs are bringing claims of violation of New York food misbranding laws and are seeking to represent a Class of consumers who purchased Barilla “Gluten Free,” “Whole Grain,” “ProteinPLUS,” and “White Fiber” pastas for personal, family, or household use and were misled by Barilla’s deceptive practice of underfilling pasta boxes.
The plaintiffs are represented by Robert I. Harwood, Daniella Quitt, and Benjamin I. Sachs-Michaels of Harwood Feffer LLP; Ronen Sarraf and Joseph Gentile of Sarraf Gentile LLP.
The Barilla Deceptive Pasta Packaging Class Action Lawsuit is Alessandro Berni, et al. v. Barilla S.p.A., et al., Case No. 1:16-cv-04196, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
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83 thoughts onBarilla Class Action Claims Pasta Boxes Are Deceptively Underfilled
I’m not going to by this brand any more , I’m tired of getting cheated by big company’s ?
I read the packages but I also know it is easy to assume what looks alike is alike. This is what the lawsuit is addressing .. LOOK A LIKE packaging that leads people to feel confident the contents are the same. But the truth is if you do not read every flipping thing you buy from word one to the end you are likely to get duped. It is TOTALLY a buyer beware society, this was not the case 20 years ago or so.
You’ll be glad to know a pound of coffee is still 13 ounces.
I TOO NOTICE THE DECREASE IN THE BOXES OF BARILLA PRODUCTS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I TOO NOTICE THE DECREASE IN THE BOXES OF THE BARILLA PASTA PRODUCTS.
Please add me to the settlement
this is the exact same thing that happened to coffee years ago, used to be 1 lb can now most are 13 oz
It may be the consumer’s responsibility to read the weight on the package, as has been mentioned, but I have been buying Barilla pasta for a long time and never noticed the reduction in the weight of these one pound boxes. (Exactly as Barilla hoped and planned!) There was nothing to indicate something had changed. They reduced the contents but not the size of the box, nor the price. I am happy this lawsuit is being brought as I’d like to recoup the money I spent thinking I was getting a one pound package.
Really, isn’t anyone responsible to READ what they are buying???? The weight in the box is right on the package. It’s also on the supermarket shelf showing the per pound price so consumers that aren’t that good at math can still comparison shop……
I have bought over 200.00 box’s of this pasta and this is not right ripping people off I think we all should get refunded for what the difference that was not in the box’s