Zoup! ‘Knowingly’ Underfill Soup Cartons By Nearly 20 Percent, Class Action Alleges

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A proposed class action lawsuit claims Zoup! Fresh Soup Company has misled consumers by intentionally underfilling its standardized soup cartons.

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The 31-page lawsuit says that the Michigan-based restaurant chain, which has over 57 retail locations and sells products at grocery outlets nationwide, offers a variety of soups in eight-, 12-, 16- and 32-ounce volumes. However, Zoup!’s standard procedure is to pour soup only up to a “fill-to” line found within each plastic carton, meaning each container is 18.75 percent short in volume than what the company advertises, the suit claims.

This policy, whereby employees are required to meet but not exceed the “fill-to” line when filling the cartons, causes Zoup! containers to be “underfilled by volumes of 1.5 ounces for an 8-ounce soup, 2.25 ounces for a 12-ounce soup, 3 ounces for a 16-ounce soup, and 6 ounces for a 32-ounce soup,” the case alleges.

To illustrate, based on the defendant’s standardized “fill-to” lines, a consumer who purchases a 32-ounce soup will, in fact, receive a carton containing only about 26 ounces of soup, the complaint contends.

“In other words, Zoup cheats its customers by providing them cartons that contain less of the subject soups than what was represented to them and what they paid for,” the filing charges.

According to the lawsuit, the advertised volumes match what Zoup! represents—eight ounces, 12 ounces, 16 ounces or 32 ounces—only when each carton is filled to the brim with soup. However, “under no circumstances” will the company serve soup in a volume that “actually meets the number of ounces represented on the menu” because it reportedly “refuses” to fill up to the brim for safety reasons, the suit relays.

“By intentionally underfilling the subject soups, and thereby shortchanging its customers, Zoup has saved millions of dollars in the cost of goods sold and has unjustly enriched itself by taking payment from customers for more product than those consumers were actually provided,” the case contests.

The plaintiffs—Michigan and Chicago residents, respectively—frequent their local Zoup! restaurants and typically order 12-ounce volumes at $7.79 or 16-ounce volumes at up to $9.59, the complaint says. The women were led to believe, based on Zoup’s representations, that the cartons would contain a full 12 or 16 ounces of soup, the filing claims.

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the United States who purchased one or more Zoup! Fresh Soup Company soups at any time within the applicable statute of limitations period.

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