Despite Label Claims, Nordic Naturals Products Contain Synthetic Ingredients, Class Action Alleges

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A proposed class action claims that certain Nordic Naturals dietary supplements are falsely advertised in that they contain synthetic ingredients.

The 105-page lawsuit contends that consumers who view the “natural” representations on Nordic Naturals product labels would reasonably expect the supplements to contain only natural ingredients. Contrary to these expectations, however, the products contain a slew of synthetic ingredients, the case claims.

The lawsuit argues that Nordic Naturals has capitalized on consumers’ desire for natural products and caused them to pay more than they otherwise would have for the supplements.

“Had Defendant not made the false, misleading, and deceptive representations and omissions, Plaintiff and the Class Members would not have been willing to pay the same amount for the Products they purchased,” the complaint reads. “Plaintiff and the Class Members paid for Products that are natural but received Products that are not natural. The Products Plaintiff and the Class Members received were worth less than the Products for which they paid.”

The case claims that although the Nordic Naturals supplements are marketed as “natural,” they each contain one or more synthetic ingredients, including gelatin, soy lecithin, maltodextrin, ascorbic acid, beta-carotene, riboflavin, niacin, thiamine mononitrate, microcrystalline cellulose, citric acid, pectin, sodium citrate, folic acid, silica, potassium chloride, stearic acid, silicon dioxide, sorbitol, malic acid, xylitol, magnesium stearate and glycerin.

According to the suit, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has issued guidance stating that a substance can be considered natural only if it is derived from a natural source and has not undergone a chemical change such that it is chemically or structurally different from how it occurs naturally (unless the chemical change was a result of a naturally occurring biological process, such as composting, fermenting, enzymatic digestion, heating or burning).

The lawsuit argues that reasonable consumers lack the ability to verify whether the ingredients in the Nordic Naturals products are natural or synthetic, which, according to the case, requires “a scientific investigation and knowledge of chemistry beyond that of the average consumer.”

Thus, even though the products’ ingredients are listed on the back of each container, reasonable consumers would not understand, and are not expected to understand, that the products contain synthetic ingredients, the case argues.

According to the suit, consumers “relied to their detriment” on the defendant’s representations of its products as natural and have been deceived into paying more than they otherwise would have for the supplements.

The case looks to represent anyone in the United States who purchased one of the following products in the country within the applicable statute of limitations period:

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