A number of class actions have recently been filed against Abbott Laboratories, alleging that certain bacteria have been found in its infant formulas. This class action is about Abbott’s Similac formula, but the allegations are different. The complaint alleges that heavy metals, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury, have been found in Similac.
The class for this action is all persons in the US who, between March 16, 2016 and the present, bought the infant formulas at issue, for household use and not for resale. California, Hawaii, Nebraska, Texas, Pennsylvania, and Michigan Subclass have also been defined, for citizens of those respective states in the above class.
The products at issue as of this time include the following:
- Similac Pro Advance
- Similac 360 Total Care
- Similac Soy Isomil
- Similac Advance OptiGRO Powder – Milk-Based
- Similac Neosure Powdered Infant Formula
The complaint refers to statistics from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to day that “only 46.3% of babies under three months old are exclusively breastfed” while only 25.8% are exclusively breastfed through six months of age. This means, the complaint claims, that a large percentage of babies rely on infant formula at the beginning of their lives.
Parents must trust the makers of baby formula to make sure that formula is safe and healthy for infants and young children, the complaint states. The packaging of Similac implies that the formula is, as the complaint puts it, “healthy, nutritious, and made with superior ingredients and not made with detrimental and genetically engineered ingredients.”
The complaint reproduces images of two seals on the Similac packaging, one promising “5 HMO Prebiotics. With 5 of the Most Abundant HMOs Found in Breast Milk” and “2’-FL HMO For Immune Support.” An image of the Nutrition Panel also promises “No Artificial Growth Hormones,” “Non[-]GMO,” and “No Palm Olein Oil.” Other make similar claims of superior ingredients, the complaint says, and the website makes additional promises, such as to give babies “the very best, with nutrition [parents] can trust to keep [babies] fed, happy, and healthy[.]”
Even so, the complaint alleges, “The Infant Formula has been shown to contain detectable levels of arsenic, cadmium, lead, mercury, and/or perchlorate, all known to pose health risks to humans, and particularly to infants.” The complaint alleges that Abbott has not warned parents about this: “Nowhere on the Infant Formula’s packaging is it disclosed that it contains, or has a material risk of containing, Heavy Metals…”
According to the complaint, recent testing of the formulas at issue found the following:
- Similac Soy Isomil—11.4 ppb cadmium
- Similac 360 Total Care—6.7 ppb arsenic
- Similar Pro Advance—10.1 ppb mercury
- Similac Advance OptiGrow Powder – Milk-Based—4.6 ppb arsenic, 2 ppb lead
The complaint asserts that parents want to buy premium infant formula that is free of toxic substances, contaminants, and chemicals, and that no parents would knowingly feed their children with formula that they knew contained heavy metals.
Article Type: LawsuitTopic: Consumer
Most Recent Case Event
Similac Baby Formula Heavy Metal Content Complaint
March 16, 2022
A number of class actions have recently been filed against Abbott Laboratories, alleging that certain bacteria have been found in its infant formulas. This class action is about Abbott’s Similac formula, but the allegations are different. The complaint alleges that heavy metals, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury, have been found in Similac.
Similac Baby Formula Heavy Metal Content ComplaintCase Event History
Similac Baby Formula Heavy Metal Content Complaint
March 16, 2022
A number of class actions have recently been filed against Abbott Laboratories, alleging that certain bacteria have been found in its infant formulas. This class action is about Abbott’s Similac formula, but the allegations are different. The complaint alleges that heavy metals, including arsenic, cadmium, lead, and mercury, have been found in Similac.
Similac Baby Formula Heavy Metal Content Complaint