PlantFusion Complete Protein Product Excessive Slack Fill Class Action

Protein powders have become a popular product, normally sold in large, opaque containers. The complaint for this class action brings suit against Reliance Vitamin Co., Inc. for its PlantFusion Complete Protein, which comes in various varieties, alleging that its jars contain excessive nonfunctional slack fill, or empty space not filled with product.

The Nationwide Class for this action is all residents of the US who, during the applicable statute of limitations periods, bought the products for other purposes than resale. A California Subclass has also been defined for all residents of California who, between August 15, 2018 and August 15, 2022, bought the products for other purposes than resale.

Page 1 of the complaint shows one of the Complete Protein opaque containers, with a red line added just over halfway up the container, to show the fill level. Although the variety shown is Creamy Vanilla Bean, the complaint alleges that Reliance’s “slack-fill scam extends to all flavors, sizes, and varieties of PlantFusion powder supplements sold in opaque containers…”

The complaint alleges, “The average consumer spends only 13 seconds deciding whether to make an in-store purchase…. Research has demonstrated that packages that seem larger are more likely to be purchased because consumers expect package size to accurately represent the quantity of the good being purchased.”

The complaint quotes the Code of Federal Regulations as saying that a container that is opaque “shall be considered to be filled as to be misleading if it contains nonfunctional slack-fill.”

The Code of Federal Regulations sets forth a number of conditions under which empty space in a package serves a function or does not need to be considered to be slack fill. For example, the extra space may protect the contents of the package or meet the requirements of the machines used to package the product, or it may be the result of settling during shipping and handling. Other reasons might be that more room is needed for a specific function of the packaging, to house a reusable container, or when the container size cannot be decreased for some reason, such as to accommodate proper labeling or to prevent pilfering.

According to the complaint, none of these conditions apply to the PlantFusion product.

The complaint shows images of at least one competing product, with a red line drawn on top of the image to show the much higher fill line, demonstrating that no difficulty exists in putting more of this kind of product in a similar kind of container.

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: Deceptive Advertising, Excessive Slack Fill