Garden Veggie Straws Class Action Says Snack Contains No Veggies

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A class action lawsuit claims Sensible Portions Garden Veggie Straws are deceptively marketed in a way that tricks consumers into believing the “veggie” snack largely consists of tomatoes, spinach and potatoes.

Plaintiffs John Solak and Jim Figger say snack maker Sensible Portions tries to convince grocery shoppers that its product is healthier than it actually is by displaying “pictures of a whole tomato, whole leaves of spinach and a whole potato on the front of the Garden Veggie Straws packaging.”

In reality, the plaintiffs claim that the veggie snack contains “highly processed byproducts of what were once vegetables, and with respect to tomatoes and spinach, only contain trace amounts of those byproducts.”

The ingredients listed on the Garden Veggie Straws includes potato starch, potato flour, corn starch, tomato paste and spinach powder which all have little health benefits, according to the Garden Veggie Straws class action lawsuit.

Solak and Figger say they relied on the product label which emphasized that Garden Veggie Straws were “nutritious and healthful, and were more healthful than similar products.” The plaintiffs claim they paid a premium for the veggie straws when compared to the price of other snacks because they believed them to be made of “whole vegetables” which would provide better nutrition.

The Sensible Portions class action says the plaintiffs suffered injury because they would never have purchased the product if they had known that Garden Veggie Straws “contain only vegetable byproducts, created in laboratories and factories, not fields, which completely lack the nutrients and vitamins that whole potatoes, tomatoes and spinach are known for.”

Solak and Figger claim Sensible Portions intended to deceive snack consumers “for no other reason than to charge a price premium and to take away market share from competing companies to further increase its own profits.”

The plaintiffs are accusing the snack maker of fraudulent business acts and practices, misleading and deceptive advertising, and breach of express warranty. They claim statements and images depicted on the packaging of Garden Veggie Straws are “likely to mislead a reasonable consumer acting reasonably under the circumstances.”

The class action lawsuit seeks to represent a nationwide Class of consumers who purchased Garden Veggie Straws in the past six years. The plaintiffs would also like to represent subclasses of residents from their home states of New York and California. Given the amount of retail stores that carry Garden Veggie Straws, the plaintiffs believe potential Class Members should number in the several thousands.

Solak and Figger are asking the court to award Class Members with monetary relief. In addition, they are seeking an injunction that would prohibit Sensible Portions from continuing to falsely advertise its veggie straw products in the future.

The plaintiffs are represented by Sergei Lemberg of Lemberg Law LLC.

The Sensible Portions Garden Veggie Straws Deceptive Marketing Class Action Lawsuit is John Solak and Jim Figger v. The Hain Celestial Group Inc. d/b/a Sensible Portions, Case No. 3:17-cv-00704-LEK-DEP, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of New York.