Consumers are paying increased attention to food ingredients—not only those in their own food but those in the food of their pets as well. Rolf C. Hagen (USA) Corporation makes Fluval brand fish food that it advertises as vegetarian, but the complaint for this class action alleges that the vegetarian labeling is deceptive because the fish food contains non-vegetarian ingredients such as shrimp and krill.
The complaint refers to dictionary entries on the word “vegetarian,” such as the statement, “Vegetarian food does not contain any meat or fish[,]” attributed to the Collins Dictionary.
Page 3 of the complaint shows a photo of a container of the Fluval Vegetarian Fish Flakes. A prominent circle on the front label reads, “Multi Veggie Formula.” Directly under the Fluval name, are the words, “Formulated with Spirulina, 4 Vegetables, and Kelp for vibrant active fish.”
However, the complaint alleges, the ingredient panel shows that the fish food contains “non-vegetarian ingredients derived from animal flesh, including herring meal, krill, shrimp meal, and fish oil.”
According to the complaint, this mislabeling is not an accident. It says that product reviews on Amazon show that consumers were deceived, expecting that the food contained no fish products. The complaint alleges that Hagen does this “in order to sell more of the Products, and to sell them at higher prices, to consumers who seek out vegetarian food products for their pets.”
Why do consumers object to the presence of fish products in the fish food? The complaint cites “concerns for pet health, animal welfare generally, and sustainability…” For example, it says, some are concerned about the sustainability of the fish meal, krill, and shrimp industries. Others “are also concerned about the presence of environmental contaminants such as PCBs, dioxins, pesticides, and methyl mercury in wild-caught aquatic animals.” Finally, some have concerns about “the health and well-being of the aquatic animals used to product human and pet food products.”
The complaint alleges that the representations are misleading and violate the California Consumer Legal Remedies Act, its False Advertising Law, and it Unfair Competition Law, as well as the consumer protection laws of multiple states.
A class and two subclasses have been defined for this action.
- The Class is all consumers who bought the products in the US during the statute of limitations period.
- The California Subclass is all persons who bought the products in California during the statute of limitations period.
- The Multi-State Subclass is all persons who bought the products during the statute of limitations periods in Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, California, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Dakota, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming.
Topic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Fluval “Vegetarian” Fish Food Contains Seafood Complaint
May 6, 2021
Consumers are paying increased attention to food ingredients—not only those in their own food but those in the food of their pets as well. Rolf C. Hagen (USA) Corporation makes Fluval brand fish food that it advertises as vegetarian, but the complaint for this class action alleges that the vegetarian labeling is deceptive because the fish food contains non-vegetarian ingredients such as shrimp and krill.
Fluval “Vegetarian” Fish Food Contains Seafood ComplaintCase Event History
Fluval “Vegetarian” Fish Food Contains Seafood Complaint
May 6, 2021
Consumers are paying increased attention to food ingredients—not only those in their own food but those in the food of their pets as well. Rolf C. Hagen (USA) Corporation makes Fluval brand fish food that it advertises as vegetarian, but the complaint for this class action alleges that the vegetarian labeling is deceptive because the fish food contains non-vegetarian ingredients such as shrimp and krill.
Fluval “Vegetarian” Fish Food Contains Seafood Complaint