All-natural?
Angel Garganta, Venable: In the New Year, we can expect to see a continuation of the growing trend among plaintiffs’ lawyers to challenge food and beverage labeling and advertising based on the presence of allegedly 'unhealthy,' 'natural,' or 'artificial' ingredients or production techniques.
Such cases will continue to challenge as misleading truthful nutrient content and other labeling claims based on the presence of even trace amounts of allegedly 'bad' chemicals or of necessary preservatives or stabilizers. The plaintiffs’ bar will thus continue to capitalize on consumer desire for simpler and more natural food by demonizing substances and processes that sound strange or unfamiliar, but are critical to modern food production, low consumer cost, food safety, and shelf stability.
And they will continue to do so with little or no evidence of actual physical or economic injury to consumers, but in many cases, will withstand motions to dismiss and raise litigation costs.