Kraft Heinz to face class-action lawsuit over mac and cheese labeling

A federal judge ruled this week that Kraft Heinz must face a proposed nationwide class-action lawsuit regarding claims the company lied over whether Kraft Mac & Cheese contained artificial preservatives.

In a decision on Wednesday, U.S. District Judge Mary Rowland said the Illinois, California and New York consumers leading the lawsuit plausibly alleged that Kraft Mac & Cheese contained a synthetic form of citric acid that differed from the natural variety, and also contained sodium phosphates. Reuters first reported the judge's decision.

According to court documents, the macaroni and cheese products are labeled, marketed and sold with a label reading “No Artificial Flavors, Preservatives, or Dyes."

"However, the Products all contain citric acid, sodium phosphate, and/or sodium triphosphate," the documents stated. "Sodium phosphates are produced by a variety of synthetic processes including acid base reactions between phosphoric acid and sodium carbonate."

The judge ruled that the plaintiffs "adequately alleged the Ingredients are artificial" -- despite Kraft Heinz's claim that citric acid is a natural ingredient -- even if some of it is artificially manufactured.

Rowland agreed with Kraft-Heinz's insistence that the plaintiffs are aware of the allegedly artificial preservatives in the macaroni and cheese and, as a result, can't claim to be at risk of future injury from the products.

Kraft-Heinz released the following statement regarding the judge's ruling:

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"Generations of families have enjoyed KRAFT Macaroni & Cheese, which contains no artificial flavors, preservatives, or dyes," a company spokesperson said. "We stand fully behind our product and are proud of its quality. We strongly believe that this lawsuit has no merit and look forward to our day in court."