J&J Faces Certified Class Action Over Benecol Spread Labels

Consumers alleging Johnson & Johnson‘s buttery spread Benecol is falsely labeled as free of trans fats may pursue their suit as a class action, a federal court said March 29.

The court certified two classes: one of California buyers and another of buyers in 10 states.

The multi-state class must be limited to purchases made between August and December 2011 because of the applicable statute of limitations, Judge Morrison C. England Jr. wrote for the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California. The California class includes purchases from 2008 to 2011.

The classes include the purchasers of ...