Popcorn Indiana Not Grown or Made in Indiana Class Action

Eagle Family Foods Group, LLC makes and sells popcorn under the Popcorn Indiana brand. This class action alleges that this brand of popcorn is not grown or popped in Indiana but in Illinois. The complaint alleges that consumers associate Indiana with popcorn and that they will be misled in believing the popcorn is authentically from Indiana and superior to non-Indiana popcorn.

Two classes have been proposed for this action:

• The Indiana Class is all persons in Indiana who bought the product during the applicable statutes of limitations.
• The Consumer Fraud Multi-State Class is all persons in North Dakota, North Carolina, Utah, Idaho, Alaska, West Virginia, and Montana who bought the product during the applicable statutes of limitations.

How is popcorn associated with Indiana? According to the complaint, Indiana is the birthplace of popcorn and it is the second-largest popcorn producer after Nebraska: “Indiana’s connection with popcorn extends across the entire value chain, from the growing of the crops to the popping of the kernels.”

“Due to this long history and roots in Indiana,” the complaint says, “popcorn made in Indiana from start to finish is generally believed to be of higher quality than popcorn made in other locations.”

The complaint alleges that consumers nowadays want authenticity—for example, they want whiskey that comes from Scotland and tomatoes from Italy, so that genuineness has become more important than quality. “Consumers will pay a price premium for what they perceive to be authentic products linked to a specific place,” the complaint alleges, “such as popcorn grown and popped in Indiana.”

A town called Popcorn, Indiana actually exists, in Perry County. In fact, the complaint claims the original bags for the product said, “Welcome to Popcorn Indiana. Population 42.” More recent bags show elements like stars and stripes inside the letters spelling out “Popcorn Indiana” or an ear of corn, using red and white colors.

However, the complaint alleges that Popcorn Indiana is neither grown in or made in Indiana, and that this is not disclosed to consumers on the front or back labels. In fact, the complaint claims that this is revealed only on the product website, which discloses that Popcorn Indiana is produced in a facility in Waukegan, Illinois.

“Popcorn Indiana is not a name whose market significance is generally understood by the consumer to connote a particular class, kind, type, or style of popcorn rather than to indicate geographical origin, because a good portion of the world’s popcorn is grown in Indiana and processed into popped corn there.”

The complaint charges, “Popcorn Indiana is deceptively misdescriptive as a name.”

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: Deceptive Advertising, Deceptive Labels, Fraud, Place of origin