Are Crunchberries real?
A classic, weird lawsuit from 2009. As summarized by legalinfo.com:
Long story short, the judge didn't buy her argument. You can read the full decision here (pdf).
The plaintiff, Janine Sugawara, says shes bought the Cap’N'Crunch with crunchberries because she thought crunchberries were real fruit. She subsequently learned that the “berries” were actually nothing more than brightly colored cereal balls, and that the cereal contained no real fruit.
She sued on the grounds that the cereal advertised falsely. She reported that she was suing for herself, and every other consumer that had been “tricked” by the cereal company. According to the complaint, Sugawara and other consumers were misled not only by the use of the word “berries” in the name, but also by an image on the front of the box, which features the product’s namesake, Cap’N'Crunch, aggressively “thrusting a spoonful of ‘Crunchberries’ at the prospective buyer.” The plaintiff brought claims for fraud, breach of warranty, and the California Unfair Competition Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act.
She sued on the grounds that the cereal advertised falsely. She reported that she was suing for herself, and every other consumer that had been “tricked” by the cereal company. According to the complaint, Sugawara and other consumers were misled not only by the use of the word “berries” in the name, but also by an image on the front of the box, which features the product’s namesake, Cap’N'Crunch, aggressively “thrusting a spoonful of ‘Crunchberries’ at the prospective buyer.” The plaintiff brought claims for fraud, breach of warranty, and the California Unfair Competition Law and Consumer Legal Remedies Act.
Long story short, the judge didn't buy her argument. You can read the full decision here (pdf).
Comments
Until I saw the court document, I was having a hard time believing Janine Sugawara was real. She must like cereal with lots of suga on it.
Posted by Virtual on 09/29/18 at 06:48 PM
Forbes article on the “frooty” lawsuits plaguing California (Froot Loops are also an apparent issue even though they only claim to contain “froot”).
The author, Kevin Underhill, runs the excellent WUish legal blog Loweringthebar.net
The author, Kevin Underhill, runs the excellent WUish legal blog Loweringthebar.net
Posted by crc on 09/30/18 at 06:31 AM
There's a reason that California is known as the "Land of Fruits and Nuts."
Posted by KDP on 09/30/18 at 11:37 AM
@crc: Thanks for the links! Good information.
Posted by Steve E. on 09/30/18 at 01:08 PM
There was a rumor going around a few years ago. It said that Cap'n Crunch had been murdered, and that the police suspect a cereal killer.
Posted by Joshua Zev Levin, Ph.D. on 09/30/18 at 01:44 PM
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Category: Lawsuits