Herbal Essences, Pantene products falsely advertise naturally derived ingredients, class action claims

Herbal Essences class action overview: 

• Who: The Procter & Gamble Co. is facing a class action lawsuit regarding claims it makes about its Herbal Essences and Pantene shampoos and conditioners.
• Why: Procter & Gamble falsely advertises its Herbal Essences and Pantene shampoos as primarily containing natural-origin and naturally derived ingredients, the lawsuit claims.
• Where: The Pantene class action was filed in federal court in California.

A class action claims The Procter & Gamble Co. falsely advertises Herbal Essences and Pantene shampoos and conditioners as containing primarily naturally derived ingredients.

The company makes claims that some products are 90% natural-origin ingredients or 97% naturally derived ingredients, when the ingredients are more likely to be industrial-origin, the class action says.

“Even with water included, the products do not contain the advertised number or mass of natural ingredients,” the lawsuit says. “Many of the exact same ingredients are used in other hair products that are not — and never have been — considered ‘natural-origin.’”

The ingredients include citric acid, which can occur naturally but isn’t actually available naturally on the scale needed to produce products such as shampoo and conditioner, the lawsuit claims. 

P&G’s naturally derived ingredients claims are deceptive, Herbal Essences class action says

Procter & Gamble’s claims about naturally derived ingredients are deceptive and misleading to customers, but the company has refused to change the shampoo and conditioner products’ labels or remove the false representations, the Pantene class action claims.

Customer demand for natural products leads companies to market their products toward those desires, the lawsuit says.

“At the same time, consumers’ ability to discern between truthful and false or deceptive claims is limited,” the Herbal Essences class action says.

The plaintiffs are asking for compensatory, statutory, punitive and treble damages along with restitution and attorney’s fees. They are also asking the court to stop Procter & Gamble from continuing to make the claims about natural origins and naturally derived ingredients.

In a similar class action lawsuit, Johnson & Johnson Consumer Inc. is facing claims that it falsely markets its Neutrogena T/Sal Therapeutic Shampoo as “preservative-free” even though it does contain a preservative.

Have you purchased products based on the claims about naturally derived ingredients as discussed in the Herbal Essences and Pantene class action? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Seth A. Safier and Anthony J. Patek of Gutride Safier LLP.

The Herbal Essences class action lawsuit is McWhorter, et al. v. The Procter & Gamble Co., Case No. 4:24-cv-00806, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California.

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