Dannon Sued Over Probiotic Bacteria Claims

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Dannon sued over " probiotic " bacteria claims

Wed Jan 23, 9:23 PM ET

 

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A proposed class action filed on Wednesday in

California accuses The Dannon Co Inc of mounting a massive false

advertising campaign to convince consumers to pay more for yogurt

containing " probiotic " bacteria because of the products' health

benefits.

 

 

The lawsuit, filed in a Los Angeles federal court, said Dannon's own

studies failed to support its advertised claims that its Activia,

Activia Lite and DanActive were " clinically "

and " scientifically " " proven " to have health benefits that other

yogurts did not.

 

It seeks reimbursement for all U.S. purchasers of Activia, Activia

Lite and DanActive, and demands that Dannon engage in " a corrective

advertising campaign. "

 

Dannon spokesman Michael Neuwirth said the company was not aware of

the lawsuit but stood by " the claims of our products and the clinical

studies which support them. "

 

Dannon Co, a unit of France's Groupe Danone has relied on Activia and

DanActive to help boost its U.S. yogurt business.

 

Activia, launched in the United States in 2006, and DanActive,

launched in 2007, are expected to account for 40 percent or more of

the company's U.S. yogurt business in 2008, Juan Carlo Dalto, Dannon

chief executive, told Reuters in November.

 

Activia's packaging says it contains " bifidus regularis, "

which " helps naturally regulate your digestive system. " Dannon has

claimed that its dairy drink DanActive " has been clinically proven to

help naturally strengthen the body's defenses when consumed daily, "

the lawsuit said.

 

Other companies also have promoted the benefits of foods with

probiotics in order to tap into health and wellness trends that have

attracted consumers.

 

The lawsuit claims Dannon has spent " far more than $100 million " to

convey deceptive messages to U.S. consumers while charging 30 percent

more that other yogurt products.

 

The lawsuit also cited scientific reports showing, counter to

Dannon's advertising, that there was no conclusive evidence that the

bacteria prevented illness or was beneficial to healthy adults -- and

that Dannon knew this.

 

The ads helped Dannon sell hundreds of millions of dollars of

ordinary yogurt at inflated prices, plaintiffs' attorney Timothy

Blood of Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins said.

 

Coughlin serves as counsel in the case along with Mager & Goldstein

LLP. (Reporting by Gina Keating; editing by Carol Bishopric)