Walmart class action claims Great Value mac and cheese contains artificial ingredients

Walmart class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Consumers Kaitlyn Taylor and Justin Alicea are suing Walmart Inc.
• Why: The plaintiffs claim that Walmart falsely advertises its Great Value Macaroni & Cheese Original Microwavable Cup product as being free of artificial flavors and preservatives.
• Where: The Great Value instant macaroni and cheese lawsuit was filed in California federal court.

A new class action lawsuit claims Walmart falsely advertises its Great Value Macaroni & Cheese Original Microwavable Cup product as being free of artificial flavors and preservatives.

Plaintiffs Kaitlyn Taylor and Justin Alicea filed the class action complaint against Walmart Inc. on Jan. 23 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws.

The lawsuit claims Walmart’s Great Value Macaroni & Cheese Original Microwavable Cup product is falsely advertised as containing “No artificial flavors” and “No artificial preservatives.”

The lawsuit alleges that the product actually contains citric acid, an artificial preservative and flavoring agent.

Taylor and Alicea claim that Walmart’s packaging and advertising are designed to mislead consumers into believing they are purchasing a premium product free from artificial ingredients.

Walmart’s mac and cheese is made with citric acid, lawsuit says

The Great Value instant macaroni and cheese lawsuit claims that citric acid, a common food additive, is artificially manufactured using a type of black mold and chemical solvents. This process, the lawsuit alleges, makes citric acid an artificial ingredient, contrary to Walmart’s claims on the product’s packaging.

The consumers say that they were deceived by Walmart’s labeling and would not have purchased the product, or would have paid less for it, had they known it contained artificial ingredients.

“Plaintiffs saw and relied on the ‘No artificial flavors’ and ‘No artificial preservatives’ claims on the front label of the Product,” the Great Value instant macaroni and cheese class action says. “Plaintiffs would not have purchased the Product, or would have paid less for the Product, had they known that the Product contains an artificial flavoring and preserving ingredient in direct contradiction to the ‘No artificial flavors’ and ‘No artificial preservatives’ statements on the Product’s front label.”

The lawsuit seeks to represent a nationwide class of consumers who purchased the product.

 The plaintiffs are suing for violations of California’s Consumers Legal Remedies Act and Unfair Competition Law, as well as breach of express warranty. They are seeking compensatory and statutory damages, disgorgement and restitution, punitive damages and attorneys’ fees and costs.

Just last year, an Illinois federal judge declined to throw out a class action lawsuit filed against The Kraft Heinz Co. and Kraft Heinz Ingredients Corp. over claims the company falsely marketed a variety of macaroni and cheese products as free of artificial flavors, preservatives and dyes. 

What do you think of the allegations in this Walmart class action lawsuit? Let us know in the comments.

The plaintiffs are represented by Lilach H. Klein, Michael T. Houchin and Zachary M. Crosner of Crosner Legal PC.

The Walmart class action lawsuit is Kaitlyn Taylor, et al. v. Walmart Inc., Case No. 5:25-cv-00186, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

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