Barilla is likely to face two class actions, with allegations of labeling and false advertising on pasta produced and sold in the US.
The Italian industrial giant and the world’s second largest pasta producer is accused of Italian sounding. (1) Brief reflections.
1) Barilla, class action in the US. The charges
Promoters of the two class action, in California and Illinois, allege that Barilla’s labels and advertisements – presented as ‘Italy’s #1 Brand of Pasta‘, with the image of the Italian flag – would mislead U.S. consumers because most of the products were made in Barilla’s Avon (New York) and Ames (Iowa) plants with non-Italian durum wheat.
The class action in Illinois involves 5 Barilla pasta lines, totaling 50 references, placed on the U.S. market as of Jan. 1, 2018:
- Classic Blue Box Pastas,
- Barilla Artisanal Pastas Collection,
- Barilla Gluten Free Pastas,
- Barilla Veggie Pastas,
- Barilla Whole-Grain Pastas.
2) Flimsy accusations
The plaintiffs state that U.S. consumers are willing to pay higher prices because they recognize the qualities of pasta made in Italy. ‘Superior quality, extreme attention to detail, elegance and a long tradition in manufacturing.’
There is no shortage of manufacturing tradition in a company founded in 1877 and still run by the Barilla family. And the quality of its pasta, when even produced in Iowa, is certainly superior to ‘Kraft Macaroni‘ and other ‘pasta-alike foods‘ with soft wheat sold in the US.
3) Paradoxes in the stars and stripes.
The labels and advertisements for Barilla pasta produced and sold in the U.S., on closer inspection, do not refer to either the country of production or the origin of the wheat. Limiting itself to highlighting the historical brand of a large industrial group that rightly claims its origin in Italy, where its headquarters and several production facilities are located.
Coca-Cola, McDonald’s, Burger King, Kentucky Fried Chicken of the rest have colonized the planet, over decades, and in numerous advertising campaigns have boasted their ‘authentic’ U.S. origin as a guarantee of quality. But consumers around the world do not therefore expect Coke, Big Mac or KFC Nuggets to be ‘made in the USA‘ with ‘US ingredients‘.
4) International rules with variable interpretation
The relevant international standard – Codex Alimentarius, General Standard for the Labelling of Prepackaged Foods – provides for the indication of origin as optional information on the label, except where its omission might mislead the consumer. (4)
Regulations on the labeling of the origin of food products and the provenance of their ingredients moreover vary between markets, as noted. (5) So do the sensitivities of consumers and the authorities charged with protecting them, and markets, from unfair trade practices.
5) Interim Conclusions
Kraft Foods (USA) is the world’s leading producer of Parmesan, a product that evokes Italy’s most famous cheese-whose name has been protected in the European Union since 1955, first under the Stresa Convention and then under the PDO (Denominazione di Origine Controllata) scheme-and systematically evokes its ‘Italian-ness.
It is simply ridiculous for the ‘ class actionindustry’ to lash out precisely against an Italian industrial group, which produces pasta according to authentic and ultrasecular production traditions, albeit in the USA. Instead of American corporations crowding the shelves with Italian sounding products that have nothing to do with the original products. (6)
Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) Dario Dongo, Marta Strinati. Made in Italy on the label for 1 in 4 products. But what does it mean? GIFT (Great Italian Food Trade). 24.7.17
(2) Vanessa Romo. 2 Californians bought Barilla pasta thinking it was made in Italy. Now they’re suing. https://www.npr.org/2022/10/27/1131731536/barilla-pasta-sued-alleged-false-advertising-made-in-italy-lawsuit NPR. 27.10.22
(3) Kelly Mehorter. Barilla Pasta Falsely Represented as Italian-Made, Class Action Alleges. https://www.classaction.org/news/barilla-pasta-falsely-represented-as-italian-made-class-action-alleges classaction.org. 21.2.23
(4) Codex Alimentarius. General Standard for the Labelling of Prepackaged Foods (CXS 1-1985). https://www.fao.org/3/y2770e/y2770e02.htm Codex Committee on Food Labelling (CCFL). See 4.5.1. ‘The country of origin of the food shall be declared if its omission would mislead or deceive the consumer‘
(5) Origin of tomatoes on canned and export sauces? Lawyer Dario Dongo answers.. FARE (Food and Agriculture Requirements). 3.3.23
(5) Campbell Soup Company another famous example, with the brand name ‘Please’
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
