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O.N.E. Coconut Water Class Action Lawsuit Gets Trimmed
By Matt O’Donnell
Plaintiffs in the O.N.E. Coconut Water class action lawsuit suffered a minor blow in court last week when a federal judge trimmed their warranty claims but allowed them to proceed with claims of false labeling against the product’s manufacturer.
Plaintiffs Patrick Vital and Russell Marchweka allege in the class action lawsuit that the makers of O.N.E. Coconut Water, One World Company LLC, mislead consumers about the health benefits of O.N.E. Coconut Water with false claims about it being a “Good Source of Electrolytes.”
According to the class action lawsuit, One World can’t make this claim because the U.S. Food and Drug Administration requires that a product provide 10 to 19 percent of the daily value of a nutrient to be able to claim to be a “good source” of it. O.N.E. Coconut Water only contains 0.5 percent of the daily value for the electrolyte sodium, and 5 percent of the daily value for the electrolyte magnesium, the class action lawsuit says.
U.S. District Judge Cormac J. Carney dismissed a lab report submitted as evidence in the class action lawsuit on which the plaintiffs’ warranty claims were based. Carney said the plaintiffs failed to prove the report was conducted in accordance with the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act, which requires testing of composite samples from 12 randomly selected cases of the product in question.
“It is impossible to determine whether a company is in compliance with the Food Labeling Rule by testing less than 12 products from 12 different shipping cases,” Judge Carney said. “If only 11 products are tested, a hypothetical 12th product could raise the average nutrient content to a sufficient level. Plaintiffs have provided no evidence that the report tested 12 products from 12 shipping cases.”
“Because the report is not sufficient evidence to support plaintiffs’ allegation that One World misstated the nutrient contents of O.N.E., One World is entitled to summary judgment on all claims to the extent they rely on this allegation. This includes the warranty and Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act claims,” Carney continued.
However, Carney also denied One World’s motion to dismiss the plaintiffs’ false labeling claims, finding that the product label says O.N.E. Coconut Water is a good source of electrolytes, but only meets FFDCA labeling requirements for a single electrolyte – potassium.
The O.N.E. Coconut Water class action lawsuit is brought on behalf of all persons who purchased O.N.E., other than for resale. It is seeking an injunction and class damages for fraudulent business practices and deceptive advertising.
A copy of the O.N.E. Coconut Water Class Action Lawsuit can be read here.
The case is Patrick Vital v. World One Enterprises, LLC, Case No. 11-cv-2126 W POR, United States District Court, Southern District of California.
Vital and Marchweka are represented by The Consumer Law Group, The Florida Chaffin Law Firm, the Law Offices of Howard Rubinstein, Smith and Vanture LLP, Finkelstein Thompson LLP, and Whatley Drake and Kallas LLC.
Updated December 7th, 2012
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