Class Action Claims Consumers Misled by ‘Whole Grain’ Claim on Jimmy Dean Breakfast Sandwiches Labels

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A proposed class action claims Jimmy Dean turkey sausage, egg white and cheese breakfast sandwiches contain less whole grain than consumers are led to believe based on the product’s packaging.

Although defendant Hillshire Brands Company represents on the sandwiches’ labels that the product is “Made With Whole Grain,” the food actually contains mostly non-whole grain flour and only a minimal amount of whole grain, the suit alleges.

Per the complaint, consumers have been misled by the representations on the defendant’s packaging, and paid a premium price for a product that failed to live up to their expectations when it comes to whole grain content.

The 15-page case says consumers prefer “nutritionally superior” whole grains to non-whole grains because the former contains important nutrients, such as dietary fiber, and vitamins, minerals and antioxidants, such as iron, zinc, folate, magnesium, thiamin, niacin, selenium, riboflavin, manganese, copper, vitamin A, and vitamin B6. Non-whole grains, or “refined grains,” on the other hand, are often described as “enriched” because some of the iron and B vitamins have been added back in after being removed, the suit states.

According to the complaint, growing consumer demand for whole grain products has led to an increase in misrepresentations of whole grain content on food labels, with one study finding that consumers often overestimate the amount of whole grains in a product when a label makes a “whole grain” claim.

“At least 40% of the time, a whole grain claim resulted in the respondents believing that the products were entirely or at least half whole grain,” the complaint relays.

The case alleges the “Made With Whole Grain” claim on Jimmy Dean breakfast sandwich labels is misleading because the primary ingredient in the sandwich portion of the turkey sausage, egg white and cheese product is “Enriched Wheat Flour,” as shown in the “very fine print” of the side panel ingredients list. The “Whole Grain Wheat Flour” ingredient is listed only “slightly above” the ingredients that make up less than two percent of the product, according to the suit.

While the USDA requires products sold with whole grain claims to contain at least eight grams of dry whole grain ingredient per labeled serving size, the Jimmy Dean sandwiches contain only five, the case says.

In that light, the product’s label is misleading because, according to the suit, the sandwiches contain mostly non-whole grains and only a minimal amount of whole grains, contradicting consumer expectations. Per the complaint, the defendant “deliberately capitalizes” on consumer misconceptions regarding whole grain content and has sold more of the product at higher prices than it would have absent the label misrepresentations.

“Defendant’s branding and packaging of the Product is designed to – and does – deceive, mislead, and defraud plaintiff and consumers,” the complaint avers, arguing that consumers would not have purchased the Jimmy Dean sandwiches, or would have paid less for them, had they known the truth.

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