Target class action claims avocado oil not 100% pure as advertised

Target class action lawsuit overview:

• Who: Plaintiff Brittany Valdovinos filed a class action lawsuit against Target Corp.
• Why: Valdovinos alleges that Target misrepresents the quality of its Good & Gather brand avocado oil as “100% pure.”
• Where: Valdovinos filed the class action lawsuit in California federal court.

A new class action lawsuit filed against Target Corp. alleges that Avocado oil sold under the retailer’s Good & Gather brand is falsely labeled as 100% pure.

Plaintiff Brittany Valdovinos alleges in her lawsuit — filed Oct. 4 in California federal court — that she purchased Target avocado oil after reviewing the product’s webpage and packaging, which prominently stated “100% Pure Avocado Oil.”

Based on this representation, Valdovinos says she believed she was purchasing pure olive oil.

However, a recent study shows the Target olive oil is adulterated and impure, the complaint claims.

Lawsuit claims company charges premium for mislabeled avocado oil

Valdovinos claims Target has exploited consumers’ willingness to pay a higher price for pure olive oil and charges a premium for a falsely advertised product.

The complaint notes the lack of enforceable standards for the production of pure avocado oil, which enable companies to increase their profits by passing off impure oils as pure avocado oil.

Scientists from the University of California, Davis, recently tested commercially available avocado oil for purity and found nearly 70% of the products they tested were “rancid or mixed with other oils,” the Target class action lawsuit says.

Target’s Good & Gather avocado oil was one of the allegedly mislabeled products.

Valdovinos claims Target reasonably should know that its labeling is misleading because the avocado oil industry has known about adulteration problems since at least 2020.

Target is “aware of, willfully blind to or negligent with respect to the fact that the avocado oils that it sells are impure,” Valdovinos asserts. “Given the pervasive problems with avocado oil adulteration, any reasonable maker, seller or distributor of avocado oil would test its own products.”

Valdovinos claims Target would have to drop the price of its avocado oil products if the company accurately labeled them without the false “100% pure” claim.

The Target class action lawsuit asserts claims for violations of California’s False Advertising Law, Consumer Legal Remedies Act, Unfair Competition Law, breach of express warranty, negligent misrepresentation, intentional misrepresentation and quasi-contract.

Walmart is facing a similar false advertising class action lawsuit alleging its Great Value brand avocado oil is not pure.

Have you purchased Target avocado oil? Let us know what you think about the allegations the product is falsely advertised as 100% pure.

Valdovinos is represented by Christin Cho and Richard Lyon of Dovel & Luner LLP.

The Target avocado oil class action lawsuit is Brittany Valdovinos v. Target Corporation, Case No. 2:24-cv-08572, in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

Read About More Class Action Lawsuits & Class Action Settlements:

• Walmart class action alleges store falsely advertises yogurt bites as free of preservatives
• Beverage brands involved in class actions, recalls, settlement
• Hannaford announces recall for fresh salads, pastas due to potential listeria contamination
• 22 Evolve Bank data breach class actions consolidated as multidistrict litigation