Taste of the Wild class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: Two New York pet owners filed a class action lawsuit against Schell & Kampeter Inc., doing business as Diamond Pet Foods and Taste of the Wild.
- Why: The plaintiffs claim the company represents its Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food as healthy and safe, when it actually poses a risk of heart disease.
- Where: The Taste of the Wild class action lawsuit was filed in New York federal court.
A new class action lawsuit alleges Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food is misrepresented as healthy and safe when it may actually pose health risks to dogs.
Plaintiffs Christa St. Germain and Denny Nikolopoulos argue Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food increases the risk of dilated cardiomyopathy (DCM), a potentially fatal heart disease, in dogs.
The pet owners say they both purchased Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food for their dogs, believing it was a good option based on the company’s marketing. However, St. Germain’s Chow Chow developed severe heart disease and had to be euthanized at age 5, while Nikolopoulos’ French bulldog also died from heart disease after eating the dog food, the class action lawsuit claims.
St. Germain and Nikolopoulos claim they would not have bought the dog food if they had known about the health risks. They accuse the companies of violating New York’s consumer protection laws and seek to represent a class of all New York consumers who purchased Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food in the past three years.
The plaintiffs demand a jury trial and request declaratory and injunctive relief and an award of actual, statutory, treble and punitive or exemplary damages for themselves and all class members.
Lawsuit alleges Taste of the Wild ignored scientific studies, FDA investigation
The Taste of the Wild class action lawsuit further argues the company has known about the risk for years but failed to disclose it to consumers and has taken steps to minimize public awareness of the alleged health risks.
The complaint alleges Diamond Pet Foods ignored warnings from veterinarians, scientific studies and even the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which began investigating the link between grain-free diets and DCM in 2018.
“[The] defendant and others in the grain-free dog food industry have taken numerous steps to minimize public awareness, including, but not limited to, refusing to disclose the research and/or health risks on its website or packaging and suppressing or concealing material information regarding the association between its product and cardiac risks,” the class action lawsuit says.
The Taste of the Wild lawsuit alleges the manufacturer fraudulently misrepresented and concealed or omitted information about its products, was unjustly enriched and violated New York General Business Law.
In pet-related claims, a consumer filed a class action lawsuit against Mars Petcare, claiming it falsely advertises its Natural Choice dog food as preservative-free.
Have you purchased Taste of the Wild grain-free dog food in the state of New York? Let us know in the comments.
The plaintiffs are represented by Daniel C. Perrone of Perrone Law LLC; Patrick J. Stueve, Todd E. Hilton and Stephen D. Ahal of Stueve Siegel Hanson LLP; Christopher S. Shank and David L. Heinemann of Shank & Heinemann LLC; and John J. Schirger, Joseph M. Feierabend and Katherine A. Feierabend of Schirger Feierabend LLC.
The Taste of the Wild class action lawsuit is St. Germain, et al. v. Schell & Kampeter Inc., Case No. 7:26-cv-07556, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Don’t Miss Out!
Check out our list of Class Action Lawsuits and Class Action Settlements you may qualify to join!
Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:
2 thoughts onTaste of the Wild lawsuit claims grain-free dog food recipes cause heart disease
Add me
Add me