Ken’s Olive Oil Salad Dressings Contain Mostly Filler Oil, Class Action Says

Ken’s Foods Inc. has been hit with a class action lawsuit alleging that its line of Ken’s Steak House salad dressings are mislabeled as “olive oil” dressings but are actually made primarily with cheap, filler oils.

In the olive oil salad dressing class action lawsuit, plaintiffs Erikka Skinner and Ann Kenney seek damages on behalf of themselves and all similarly affected U.S. consumers.

The plaintiffs allege that the labeling on Ken’s Steak House salad dressings are inconsistent and misleading — while the dressings’ front label indicates that the dressings are made with olive oil, the back label shows that they are made primarily with cheap, filler oils such as canola oil and soybean oil, while only containing two – six percent olive oil.

Skinner and Kenney say they relied on the front labeling of Ken’s Steakhouse salad dressings to make their purchase, and only after they bought the dressing saw that the back ingredients label was inconsistent with the front labeling.

They claim that the inconsistent labeling occurs on multiple salad dressings made by the company, including the following dressings:

• Ken’s Steak House Greek with Feta Cheese, Black Olives, and Imported Olive Oil
• Ken’s Steak House Olive Oil and Vinegar
• Ken’s Steak House Italian with Extra Virgin Olive Oil

The Ken’s mislabeled salad dressing class action lawsuit alleges that Ken’s Foods intentionally mislabels their products to capitalize on consumers’ strong preference for olive oil over cheap filler oils. The Ken’s Foods class action lawsuit points to olive oil’s widely acknowledged health benefits and superior taste to argue that consumers prefer olive oil over canola and soybean oil which have neither the same health benefits nor the same taste.

Beyond consumers’ general preference for olive oil over other vegetable oils, the Ken’s salad dressing class action lawsuit alleges that Ken’s Foods attempted to capitalize on consumers’ additional preference for extra virgin olive oil and imported olive oil over other olive oil.

According to the salad dressing class action lawsuit, extra virgin and imported olive oil are marketed as “premium” products, and are priced comparably higher than other vegetable and olive oils.

The Ken’s olive oil salad dressing class action lawsuit alleges that the defendant falsely advertises that its products are made with “extra virgin olive oil” and “imported olive oil” to attract consumers looking for premium products. The class action lawsuit further claims that this practice enabled the company to charge higher prices for the products than it otherwise would be able to if the products were correctly advertised as containing canola or soybean oil.

The falsely advertised salad dressing class action lawsuit alleges that Ken’s Foods should have known that their products are mislabeled if they had taken “reasonable care” with their products, and thus, their false advertising violates California law.

Skinner and Kenney argue that they and similarly affected consumers were financially injured by the company’s false advertising because had they known that the products contained mostly filler oils, they would not have purchased the products. They also argue that other companies who advertise and price products fairly were harmed by Ken’s Foods’ false advertising.

Skinner and Kenney are represented by Ryan J. Clarkson, Shireen M. Clarkson, and Bahar Sodiafy of Clarkson Law Firm PC.

The Ken’s Olive Oil Dressing Class Action Lawsuit is Erikka Skinner and Ann Kenney v. Ken’s Foods Inc., Case No. 2:18-cv-00846-R-AGR, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.