Kroger agrees to $1.25M settlement over bread calorie mislabeling

Kroger settlement overview:

• Who: The Kroger Co. has agreed to a $1.25 million settlement with the State of California.
• Why: Prosecutors alleged Kroger advertised false calorie counts on its Carbmaster bread products for years.
• Where: The Kroger false advertising lawsuit was filed in Santa Barbara County Superior Court.

The Kroger Co. has agreed to pay $1.25 million to resolve a false advertising lawsuit brought by California prosecutors, alleging the grocery giant misrepresented calorie counts on several of its store-brand bread products.

The Kroger lawsuit was filed by the district attorneys of Santa Barbara, Ventura and Riverside Counties.

Prosecutors alleged Kroger displayed inaccurate calorie information on five varieties of its Kroger-branded Carbmaster bread — Wheat Bread, White Bread, Multi-Seed Bread, Hamburger Buns and Hotdog Buns — at hundreds of California Ralphs, Foods Co. and Food 4 Less locations as well as online.

According to the lawsuit, Kroger began selling the Carbmaster line in 2021 with miscalculated calorie values on both the consumer-facing packaging and the FDA Nutrition Facts panel, though investigators noted the calorie undercount problem dated as far back as November 2018.

After consumers complained, Kroger corrected the FDA Nutrition Facts panel but continued displaying the lower, inaccurate calorie figure on the consumer-facing side of the packaging for at least six months.

For at least one bread variety, prosecutors alleged Kroger kept the false calorie count in its online listings for nearly two years — even after the company became aware of the district attorney’s investigation.

The Kroger lawsuit also alleged the products were shelved next to competitors’ bread displaying higher but accurate calorie counts, giving Kroger an unfair advantage with shoppers seeking low-calorie options.

Prosecutors: Carbmaster buns labeled at half their actual calorie count

The prosecution alleged Kroger grossly understated its Carbmaster Hamburger Buns as containing 50 calories when the buns actually contained 100, and advertised its Wheat Bread as containing 30 calories when the correct figure was 50.

“Food labeling laws protect consumers and help them make healthy food choices,” Santa Barbara County District Attorney John Savrnoch said. “Kroger marketed Carbmaster Bread Products to consumers on specialty diets while significantly misrepresenting the nutritional information of those products.”

The lawsuit alleged violations of California’s False Advertising Law and Unfair Competition Law under the state’s Business and Professions Code.

During litigation, Kroger was sanctioned by both a federal court and the Santa Barbara County Superior Court for $9,800 and $12,750, respectively, for conduct that included relying on legal arguments a federal judge found foreclosed by Ninth Circuit precedent and failing to comply with multiple discovery orders.

The $1.25 million Kroger settlement was announced June 9. Kroger has not admitted wrongdoing.

In another recent settlement, Kroger agreed to pay $17 million to resolve class action claims it inflated co-payments for insured prescription drug purchases.

What do you think of this Kroger false advertising settlement? Let us know in the comments.

The State of California is represented by Senior Deputy District Attorney Morgan Lucas and District Attorney investigator Robert Parmelee of the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office, along with the district attorney’s offices of Ventura and Riverside counties.

The Kroger false advertising lawsuit is People of the State of California v. The Kroger Co., Case No. 24CV03007, in the Santa Barbara County Superior Court.

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