Lawsuit Claims Barilla Deceptively Under-Fills Pasta Boxes
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork)-- A culinary controversy could leave a major pasta company in hot water. The company, Barilla, is facing a lawsuit and some unappetizing allegations.
It seems Barilla has some customers boiling, CBS2's Scott Rapoport reported. The company is accused in a lawsuit of "deceptive packaging" which essentially misleads customers by underfilling its boxes of pasta by as much as 25 percent.
According to the lawsuit filed by four New Yorkers, Barilla specialty pastas like gluten-free, protein plus and whole grain come in boxes that are similar in size to other Barilla products, but are actually filled with less pasta in some cases.
"I think that might not be a bad thing for people's health. I think people eat too much pasta as it is. Maybe they're helping us out," Midtown resident Lou Puleo said.
The lawsuit claims "Barilla relies on consumers' familiarity with the box size and appearance," to "mislead consumers into thinking they are purchasing the same quantity of pasta when, in reality, the company is filling the boxes with materially less pasta."
The suit does admit that the "new reduced weight" of the pasta is noted on the box, but claims it's in small print. The actual weight can be seen on the box.
The defendants in the case are claiming they've endured "out-of-pocket loss" and have been "overcharged" after buying Barilla pasta over the years.
CBS2 wanted to know what Barilla had to say about all this and reached out to the company for comment.
Barilla said it doesn't comment on pending or rumored lawsuits, but that its products are high quality that meet or exceed all state and federal regulations.
It remains to be seen if the lawsuit will land the pasta maker in hot water. There is no word yet on how much money the lawsuit is seeking in damages.
