Rite Aid’s Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings Formula Is Misleadingly Labeled, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action alleges Rite Aid’s Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings infant formula is misleadingly labeled in that consumers are led to believe the product is nutritionally appropriate for children who are no longer infants.

The 15-page lawsuit claims that although industry experts agree that the nutritional needs of children older than 12 months are best met with whole cow’s milk, water and healthy whole foods as part of a balanced diet, Rite Aid has wrongfully positioned its Toddler Beginnings product as nutritionally adequate for children between nine and 18 months old in the same way that it markets its infant formula as an alternative to breast milk for children younger than 12 months.

Essentially, the labeling elements found on packages of the Tugaboos toddler formula “ride the coattails” of identical, carefully regulated and trusted statements on the label of Rite Aid’s infant formula so as to drive sales, the complaint contends. The case alleges the Toddler Beginnings product is, in truth, not as healthy for toddlers as the recommended whole cow’s milk, and several times more expensive.

“Federal and identical state regulations require companies to identify and describe a product in a way that distinguishes it from other products, so consumers can make informed purchasing decisions,” the lawsuit states, summarizing that Rite Aid unlawfully fails to distinguish its Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings product from its infant formula, and inform buyers as to how it is different.

Per the suit, the representations on the Toddler Beginnings product—including what the case calls a “confusingly similar” name and similar marketing to the Tugaboos infant formula—have led caregivers to believe that the formula is appropriate for the nutritional needs of children over 12 months old. In reality, the lawsuit says, experts have agreed that such products offer “no unique nutritional value” and contain unhealthy added sugars.

The lawsuit alleges Rite Aid has attempted to capitalize on consumers’ trust of infant formulas by marketing its private label Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings product in a substantially similar way to its infant formula. According to the case, the name of the Toddler Beginnings product, “Infant Formula With Iron – Milk-Based Powder” is deceptively similar to the name of the defendant’s infant formula, “Infant Formula – Milk-Based Powder With Iron.”

The case claims the product’s marketing leads consumers to believe Toddler Beginnings is nutritionally appropriate for children over 12 months old in the same way that infant formula is nutritionally appropriate for infants. According to the suit, however, industry experts, including the AAP Committee on Nutrition and subcommittees of the World Health Organization, have agreed that the nutritional needs of children older than 12 months should be met with whole cow’s milk, water and healthy whole foods. 

These experts have found that transitional formulas such as the defendant’s product are “unnecessary” and often lack certain nutritional components that have been recommended by the World Health Organization for children’s growth and development, the filing states.

Moreover, the lawsuit alleges the Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings product contains less protein, more fat and more sugar than whole cow’s milk, which is considered to be “nutritionally superior” to formula, and is several times more expensive than milk.

The suit also claims that although the Toddler Beginnings formula is marketed as “NON-GMO,” this representation is misleading given the product is made with dairy ingredients from cows who have been fed genetically modified feed.

The lawsuit argues that consumers would not have purchased the Tugaboos Toddler Beginnings product, or would have paid less for it, had they known the truth.

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