Dr. Kellyann Bone Broth Hit with Class Action Over Allegedly Misleading Protein Content Claims

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A proposed class action lawsuit alleges the labeling of certain Dr. Kellyann bone broths is unlawful and misleading since the products provide “significantly less” usable protein than advertised.

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The 54-page lawsuit says that several Dr. Kellyann product labels feature prominent claims that the bone broths provide a specific amount of protein per serving, such as the statement “16g PROTEIN” found on Dr. Kellyann Homestyle-flavor bone broth. However, the suit contends that the items’ packaging unlawfully lacks an accompanying statement in the nutrition facts panel that explains as a “percent of daily value” (%DV) how much of that protein, which is collagen-based in the Dr. Kellyann bone broths, is actually useable to support nutritional needs.

The case relays that “not all proteins are the same in their ability to meet human nutritional requirements,” as some are more digestible than others. Had the company included a %DV statement for protein per serving on product packaging, as required by law, it would have revealed that the bone broths contain “low quality proteins” that “do not provide any usable protein to humans,” the complaint alleges.

According to the filing, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) prohibits manufacturers from marketing food products with a protein claim unless they have calculated the “corrected amount of protein per serving”—that is, how much protein is “actually available to support human protein needs”—through the Protein Digestibility Corrected Amino Acid Score (PDCAAS) method.

Under FDA regulations, a manufacturer such as Dr. Kellyann must use the PDCAAS method to measure a product’s percent of daily value for protein, and list the item’s %DV score in its nutrition facts panel, the lawsuit shares.

By failing to satisfy the FDA’s label requirements, Dr. Kellyann has made unlawful protein claims on product packaging, the suit alleges.

In addition, the case charges that the protein representations are misleading because consumers reasonably expect the products to provide the full amount of protein advertised on the front label “in a form the body can use.”

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone in the United States who purchased Dr. Kellyann bone broth products since March 6, 2020.

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