Nips Caramel Hard Candies Lack Enough Milkfat to Be Called ‘Rich and Creamy,’ Class Action Says

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A proposed class action contends that Ferrara Candy Company’s description of Nips caramel hard candies as “rich and creamy” is “false, deceptive, and misleading” considering the product contains very little milkfat.

The 15-page lawsuit argues that given the fact that “[a]ll legitimate and credible definitions of caramel candy include cream,” milkfat is “the most significant ingredient in caramel.” Ultimately, the Nips caramel hard candies lack the amount and type of milkfat ingredients, such as butter or cream, that consumers expect from a product touted as “rich and creamy,” the case claims.

Per the suit, the Nips caramel hard candies are made not with milkfat but less expensive refined vegetable oils, which do not melt at mouth temperature, “provide less satiety” and “leave[] a waxy mouthfeel.” Moreover, the complaint says that although the ingredients list for the Nips hard candies states that the product includes “reduced milk fat” consisting of whole and skim nonfat milk, the candies’ fat content comes almost exclusively from hydrogenated coconut oil, which lends 90 percent of the product’s key fat content. 

The candies also contain whey, which the lawsuit says is “added for costs savings” over more expensive milkfat ingredients and, despite being dairy, is almost entirely protein. 

As the case tells it, the Nips caramel hard candies “lack[] the nutritive, sensory, organoleptic, and other attributes” consumers expect from a “rich and creamy” caramel product. 

“Reasonable consumers must and do rely on a company to honestly identify and describe the components, attributes, and features of a product, relative to itself and other comparable products or alternatives,” the suit states, alleging the value of the candy is “materially less” than represented by Ferrara.

The lawsuit looks to cover consumers in Illinois, Arkansas, Iowa, Michigan, Wyoming, Montana, Nebraska, Virginia, Georgia and West Virginia who bought the Nips caramel “rich and creamy” hard candy within the applicable statute of limitations. 

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