Hershey, Nestle, Mars Beat Appeals in Child Labor Label Suits

Nestle, Mars, and Hershey can’t be held liable under Massachusetts consumer protection law for allegedly failing to disclose that their chocolate is made with child slave labor, the First Circuit said Tuesday.

Danell Tomasella alleged in separate cases that the companies’ nondisclosure of the use of child labor in their West Africa cocoa supply chains violates the Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act, and that the defendants were unjustly enriched. The would-be class suits were consolidated for appeal.

Tomasella failed to state a plausible claim that the omission was deceptive or unfair under the Massachusetts law, the U.S. Court of Appeals for ...