Woman Sues Kraft Heinz For Misleading Cook Time on Microwavable Product
She’s asking for at least $5 million in damages.
Kraft Heinz Company has been hit with a lawsuit involving it's popular Velveeta Shells & Cheese.
A woman in Florida has filed a $5 million class action lawsuit against the company, taking issue with the product's “ready in 3 ½ minutes” label printed on the front of the packaging.
The suit—filed by West Palm Beach-based law firm on behalf of Amanda Ramirez on Nov. 18—alleges that the company's claim misleads consumers about how long it takes to fully prepare the meal.
“Consumers seeing ‘ready in 3½ minutes’ will believe it represents the total amount of time it takes to prepare the Product,” the suit states, clarifying, “Meaning from the moment it is unopened to the moment it is ready for consumption.”
However, that’s not the case, according to Ramirez, as the suit lists all the additional steps required such as removing the lid and the cheese sauce pouch, adding water to the fill cup line and stirring, microwaving uncovered on high for 3 ½ minutes and stirring in the contents of said cheese pouch. Additional time will also be added as the defendant notes that “cheese sauce will thicken upon standing."
"The label does not state the Product takes '3½ minutes to cook in the microwave,' which would have been true," the lawsuit reportedly notes. "To provide consumers with a Product that is actually 'ready in 3½ minutes,' the Product would need to be cooked in the microwave for less than 3-and-a-half minutes, so that all the preparation steps could be completed in the 3-and-a-half minutes time frame."
Ramirez prides herself on being a person who “looks to bold statements of value when quickly selecting groceries” in the suit, which specifies that she purchased the product for a “premium price” of $10.99 in October and November.
The suit does not reveal how long it took her to prepare the meal from start to finish.
She’s asking for at least $5 million in damages, “including statutory and punitive exclusive of interest and costs.”
WGN received a response from the Kraft Heinz Company, stating, “We are aware of this frivolous lawsuit and will strongly defend against the allegations in the complaint.”
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