BELLEVILLE — A class action against the makers of Red Barron's frozen pizzas alleges the products are falsely and deceptively labeled as "preservative free."
Jamie Jackson and Trenton McDonald, individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated and are current Illinois residents, filed a complaint Sept. 4 in the St. Clair County Circuit Court against SFC Global Supply Chain Inc., alleging violation of the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act, breach of express warranty and unjust enrichment.
The plaintiffs allege that SFC Global's Red Barron brand Brick Oven Cheese Trio Pizza, Classic Crust Four Cheese Pizza and Thin & Crispy Five Cheese Pizza are marketed and labeled with "deceptive, unfair and false merchandising." The plaintiffs claim in their suit that the defendant's pizzas are labeled as having "preservative free crust" and containing "no artificial flavors," yet the products allegedly contain the preservatives sodium stearoyl lactylate, enzymes and mono and diglycerides. Those preservatives are used as "anti-staling agents" to "preserve softness."
Jackson and McDonald also claim SFC Global uses the alleged false labeling to "entice" consumers to "pay a premium" for the pizza products and that the labeling is not "consistent" with FDA guidelines. They accuse the defendant of using "deceitful" labels because the pizzas contain the added preservatives and synthetic ingredients.
The plaintiffs claim consumers have been "deprived of the benefit of their bargain" in buying the pizzas that "are not what they represented to be."
They seek monetary relief, interest and all other proper relief. They are represented by David Nelson of Nelson & Nelson Attorneys At Law PC in Belleville and Matthew Armstrong of The Armstrong Law Firm LLC in St. Louis.
St. Clair County Circuit Court case number 20-L-0678