Jelly Belly Candy Company is being sued by a California woman who charges the company misled her into thinking one of its products does not contain sugar.
The plaintiff, Jessica Gomez of San Bernadino County, CA first brought the case against the candy company earlier this year, blaming “fancy phrasing” for her confusion over the ingredients, according to Legal News Line.
Gomez purchased Jelly Belly’s Sport Beans, a product marketed as an exercise supplement containing carbohydrates, electrolytes and vitamins, which lists “evaporated cane juice” on the label instead of citing sugar as an ingredient. She alleges the company highlights that its carbohydrate, electrolyte and vitamin content to suggest the product has “healthy characteristics,” according to court documents.
In the class action suit, Gomez claims the wording on the label is in violation of the state’s Consumer Legal Remedies Act, Unfair Business Practices Law and False Advertising Law and is designed to intentionally deceive the health-conscious consumers targeted by Sport Beans,
Jelly Belly called the lawsuit “nonsense” in a motion submitted to the court in April.
“No reasonable consumer could have been deceived by Sports Bean’s labeling — Gomez could not have seen ‘evaporated cane juice’ without also seeing the product’s sugar content on its Nutrition Facts panel,” the motion reads.
The motion adds, “Plaintiff does not explain why an athlete — or anyone — would be surprised to find sugar in a product described as ‘Jelly Beans’.”
Photo courtesy Jelly Belly
