Yet another class action suit has been filed alleging that a manufacturer is making consumers pay for air.
This time, BFY Brands is the target, for its Popcorners snack product. As alleged in the complaint, filed in New York district court, "[s]lack-fill is air or filler material within a packaged product. Non-functional slackfill is slack-fill that serves no legitimate purpose, and misleads consumers about the quantity of food they are purchasing. When consumers purchase a package of Defendant's Product, they are getting fewer chips than they bargained for. They are effectively tricked into paying for air, because each Product bag contains a large amount of non-functional slack-fill."
Moreover, plaintiff alleges, "[t]he size of the Product bags in comparison to the volume of the chips contained therein makes it appear to Plaintiff and Class members that they are buying more chips than what is actually being sold. Plaintiff and Class members are denied the benefit of their bargain because they pay for full bags of the Products, but actually receive bags that are mostly filled with air." And, worse, according to the complaint, defendant's products have even more non-functional slack-fill than other snack products.
Like text messages, auto-renew programs, and the word "natural," food companies' packaging is drawing the unwelcome attention of the class action bar. Whether this new litigation trend turns out to be -- excuse me -- all hot air, remains to be seen.
"Plaintiff REAVES and members of the Class have suffered an injury, including the loss of money or property, as a result of Defendant's false and misleading advertising. In purchasing the Products, Plaintiff REAVES and members of the Class relied on the misrepresentations regarding the quantity of the Products that was actually chips rather than nonfunctional slack-fill. Those representations were false and/or misleading because the Products contains substantial hidden non-functional slack-fill. Plaintiff and the Class were deprived of the benefit of their bargains when they purchased the Products and received mostly air."
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