Quaker Oats Class Action Filed Over Maple Oatmeal Label

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The Quaker Oats Company’s Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal products don’t actually contain maple syrup, according to a false advertising class action lawsuit filed last week in Illinois federal court.

Plaintiff Kevin Phung, a resident of San Diego, says he regularly purchases Quaker Oats Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal.

According to the Quaker Oats class action lawsuit, he was surprised to learn through internet news articles that the products contain no maple.

“Maple is generally considered to be healthier and more nutritious than other sweetener options,” Phung alleges in the false advertising class action lawsuit. “Some reported benefits of maple include fifty-four antioxidants, and high levels of vitamins like riboflavin and minerals like zinc and manganese.”

At issue in the Quaker Oats class action lawsuit is that the product prominently conveys to consumers that maple is an ingredient in the products. Phung says he relied on the representation that the products contained maple, and that he would not have purchased the instant oatmeal if he had known that they contained no maple.

The Quaker Oats maple oatmeal class action lawsuit asserts that Quaker Oats used false, misleading and deceptive messages to entice consumers to purchase the maple oatmeal products.

Phung seeks to represent a Class of California consumers who purchased any of the following Quaker Oats products: Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal (Classic Recipe), Maple & Brown Sugar High Fiber Instant Oatmeal, Maple & Brown Sugar Gluten Free Instant Oatmeal, Maple & Brown Sugar Lower Sugar Instant Oatmeal, Maple & Brown Sugar Weight Control Instant Oatmeal, and Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal.

The maple false advertising class action lawsuit accuses Quaker Oats of violating California’s Unfair Competition Law and the Consumers Legal Remedies Act. It also asserts a claim for breach of express warranty.

Phung is not the first disgruntled consumer to file a false advertising class action lawsuit against Quaker Oats over the allegedly mislabeled Maple & Brown Sugar oatmeal products. Plaintiff Darren Eisenlord filed the first Quaker Oats class action lawsuit earlier this year, claiming that he was misled by the image of a pitcher of maple syrup next to the words “maple sugar” on the packaging.

In April, plaintiff Courtney Drey filed a nearly identical Quaker Oats class action lawsuit on behalf of a nationwide Class of Quaker Oats maple product consumers in Illinois federal court.

Phung is represented by Ben Barnow, Erich P. Schork, Jeffrey D. Blake and Anthony L. Parkhill of Barnow and Associates PC; Timothy G. Blood of Blood Hurst & O’Reardon LLP; Aron D. Robinson of the Law Office of Aron D. Robinson; David Markham and Peggy J. Reali of The Markham Law Firm; Patrick N. Keegan and James M. Treglio of Keegan & Baker LLP; and Walter L. Haines of United Employees Law Group PC.

The Quaker Oats Maple & Brown Sugar Class Action Lawsuit is Kevin Phung v. The Quaker Oats Company, Case No. 1:16-cv-06215, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division.

UPDATE: On Oct. 10, 2017, a California federal judge dismissed a consolidated class action lawsuit that accused Quaker Oats Co. of misleading consumers by selling Maple & Brown Sugar Instant Oatmeal that didn’t actually contain real maple syrup or maple sugar.