Barilla Pasta Falsely Represented as Italian-Made, Class Action Alleges

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A proposed class action claims Barilla America, Inc. has falsely represented that more than 50 of its pasta products are made in Italy.

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The 39-page lawsuit alleges Barilla purposefully labels its products as “Italy’s #1 Brand of Pasta,” alongside an artistic recreation of the country’s flag colors so that consumers are led to believe its pasta is Italian-made. Contrary to these representations, the “overwhelming majority” of Barilla-brand pasta products sold in the U.S. are manufactured in Iowa and New York, and their ingredients are sourced from countries other than Italy, the complaint contends.

The case claims the specific varieties of misleadingly packaged Barilla pasta are sold under the company’s five product lines, Classic Blue Box, Collezione Artisanal, Gluten Free, Veggie and Whole Wheat, and include:

1)    Classic Blue Box Pastas, including angel hair, campanelle, cellentani, ditalini, elbows, farfalle, fettuccine, fideo cut spaghetti, gemelli, jumbo shells, large shells, linguine, linguine fini, manicotti, medium shells, mezzi rigatoni, mini farfalle, mini penne, mini wheels, mostaccioli, orzo, pastina, penne, pipette, rigatoni, rotini, spaghetti, spaghetti rigati, thick spaghetti, thin spaghetti, tri-color penne, tri-color rotini, wavy lasagne and ziti;

2)    Barilla Collezione Artisanal Pastas, including bucatini, casarecce, orecchiette, penne, rigatoni and spaghetti;

3)    Barilla Gluten Free Pastas, including elbows, fettuccine, penne, rotini, and spaghetti;

4)    Barilla Veggie Pastas, including rotini and spaghetti; and

5)    Barilla Whole-Grain Pastas, including elbows, lasagne, linguine, penne, rotini, spaghetti and thin spaghetti. 

“Through falsely, misleadingly, and deceptively labeling the Products, Defendant sought to take advantage of consumers’ desire for authentic Italian pasta, while cutting costs and reaping financial benefits of manufacturing the Products in the United States of America,” the suit reads, stressing that the average consumer is not knowledgeable about the sourcing of ingredients or the location of where products are made, and instead relies on packaging representations for such information.

According to the case, consumers are willing to pay a premium price for products they perceive to be authentically Italian due to the country’s association with “superior quality, extreme attention to detail, elegance, and a long established tradition in manufacturing.” In particular, Italian pasta is one of the most highly demanded products in the global market, partly because Italian durum wheat, pasta’s main ingredient, is considered one of the best varieties in the world, the complaint explains.

However, since the country’s production of durum wheat is not enough to meet its high demand, companies that want skin in the game, including Barilla, have “scrambled to manufacture, market, and sell purportedly authentic ‘Italian-made’ pastas, using durum wheat that is not sourced in Italy,” the case says.

The filing relays that although Barilla was founded in Parma, Italy, almost all of its products sold in the United States are made domestically. However, the case contends, Barilla’s marketing campaign leans heavily on the company’s Italian origin to further convince consumers that its pasta is made with Italian ingredients and manufactured in Italian factories.

For example, the homepage of Barilla.com states that the company is “an Italian family-owned food company” that is “recognized worldwide as a symbol of Italian know-how,” and the company’s brand website, BarillaGroup.com/en, “heavily ties” its identity to Italy by publicizing its Italian origins and history, the complaint relays. Per the case, the brand website’s description of the Barilla brand pasta museum, located in Giarolo, Collecchio, Italy, emphasizes that its pasta is made from durum wheat found in Sicily, Liguria, Bologna and Naples, Italy.

The lawsuit seeks to represent anyone in Illinois who purchased Barilla-brand pasta products with the statement “Italy’s #1 Brand of Pasta” on the packaging, including the above-listed Barilla pasta products, for personal purposes from January 1, 2018 up through preliminary approval.

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