Wiley Wallaby Very Berry Licorice Not as Naturally Flavored as Advertised, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action claims Wiley Wallaby has misled consumers by falsely marketing its Very Berry licorice candies as naturally flavored.

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According to the 18-page lawsuit, KLN Enterprises, Inc.—which does business as Wiley Wallaby—labels the product as “Natural Strawberry and Raspberry Flavored” licorice “Free of … Artificial Colors & Flavors.” Despite these representations, the candies are, in truth, artificially flavored using DL malic acid, a decidedly unnatural substance derived from petrochemicals, the suit alleges.

The case shares that although there is a natural form of malic acid, it is expensive to manufacture and thus “almost never used in mass-produced food products.” Per the complaint, independent testing by a third-party laboratory determined that the type of malic acid used by Wiley Wallaby to flavor its licorice is the synthetic DL malic acid, which is produced from benzene or butane and chemically processed in petrochemical plants.

As DL malic acid is not derived from any natural source, it is not a “natural flavor” as defined by state regulations and the federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act, the filing says. Under state and federal laws, if a food product’s characterizing flavor is “simulated or reinforced” with an artificial flavor, the labels must clearly disclose that the item is “artificially flavored,” the lawsuit explains.

However, in violation of state and federal regulations, the packaging of Wiley Wallaby’s licorice candies fails to make these required disclosures, the suit claims.

As the case tells it, consumer demand is increasing for “clean label” foods—that is, products that are all-natural, unprocessed or free of artificial additives.

As a result of the company’s misrepresentation of the “naturally flavored” licorice and its failure to disclose the use of the synthetic additive DL malic acid, reasonable consumers are misled to believe that the candies contain only natural flavorings, the complaint alleges.

The filing contends that consumers would not have paid a premium price for the product, or purchased it at all, had they known it was artificially flavored.

The lawsuit looks to represent any California residents who purchased Wiley Wallaby’s Very Berry licorice candies at any time since October 16, 2019.

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