Judge Dismisses Red Stripe False Advertising Class Action

A California federal judge has dismissed without prejudice a proposed false advertising class action lawsuit against the makers of Red Stripe Beer.

U.S. District Judge Barry Ted Moskowitz said beer drinkers can’t sue Diageo-Guinness for labeling its Red Stripe brew with terms like “Jamaican Style Lager” and “The Taste of Jamaica,” despite the fact that it’s produced in the United States.

Red Stripe has been brewed in Jamaica since 1938, and has been imported to the United States since 1985. Diageo-Guinness’s predecessor bought the rights to Red Stripe in 1993 and moved its production to the United States in 2012. Today it’s made in Latrobe, Pa., by City Brewing Co.

Plaintiffs Aaron Dumas and Eugene Buner were suing the company over claims that Red Stripe — which is labeled with phrases like “Jamaican-style lager” and “taste of Jamaica” prominently displayed on the bottles — only used “obscure white text” when mentioning that the brew actually comes from Latrobe. The lawsuit also alleges that this information can’t be seen until the bottles are removed from the packaging.

The two plaintiffs asserted that if they had been made aware that Red Stripe was not in fact an imported beer, they would not have purchased it or would have paid less for it. They were seeking Class certification and damages for false advertising, unfair competition, business law violations, and negligent and intentional misrepresentation.

Red Stripe’s labeling includes the wording “For over 80 years…Red Stripe has embodied the spirit, rhythm and pulse of Jamaica and its people.” The judge said that this language is a vague, colorful expression of Red Stripe’s association with Jamaica and cannot reasonably be construed as a designation of origin. The judge also pointed out that on the edge of the label are the words “Brewed and Bottled by Red Stripe Beer Company Latrobe, PA.”

Judge Moskowitz further ruled that the packaging on Red Stripe would not mislead a customer into believing that the beer is brewed in Jamaica with Jamaican ingredients. He also concluded that the plaintiffs cannot claim deception or misrepresentation based on Red Stripe’s bottle labels or packaging.

“(T)he Court finds that a reasonable customer would not be misled by the visible packaging into believing that Red Stripe is brewed in Jamaica with Jamaican ingredients,” Judge Moskowitz wrote in dismissing the complaint without prejudice. “The mere fact that the word ‘Jamaica’ and ‘Jamaican’ appear on the packaging is not sufficient to support a conclusion that consumers would be confused regarding the origin and ingredients of the beer.”

In his ruling he cited Forschner Group Inc. v. Arrow Trading Co., in which the Second Circuit held that the phrase “Swiss Army knife cannot fairly be read to mean ‘made in Switzerland.’”

Additionally, the judge referred to other similar cases, Piazza’s Seafood World LLC. v. Odom which held that the use of “Cajun Boy” and “Cajun Delight” trade names on seafood products imported from overseas was not actually misleading because Piazza labels its products with their country of origin.

He also referenced that in Pernod Ricard USA LLC. v. Bacardi U.S.A. that the words “Havana Club” on bottles of rum could be understood as indicating the products geographic origin in Havana, Cuba, but “those same words cannot mislead a reasonable consumer who is told in no uncertain terms that ‘Havana Club’ is a brand of rum made in Puerto Rico.”

He concluded “Plaintiffs cannot state a claim for deception or misrepresentation based on the Red Stripe bottle labels or packaging for the 12-packs or 6-packs. However, the Court will grant plaintiffs leave to amend the complaint to assert claims based on other facts. If plaintiffs choose to amend their complaint, they must file their amended complaint within 15 days of the filing of this order.”

This is not the first time a class action lawsuit has targeted beer brewers over labeling practices. In 2015, Anheuser-Busch settled two class action lawsuits over allegations that Beck’s beer wasn’t actually German and that Kirin beer wasn’t actually imported from Japan, but made in Los Angeles.

The plaintiffs are represented by Robbins Arroyo LLP.

The Red Stripe False Advertising Class Action Lawsuit is Dumas, et al. v. Diageo PLC and Diageo-Guinness USA Inc., Case No. 3:15-cv-01681-BTM-BLM in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California.

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