A woman took her frustrations with the Velveeta Mac and Cheese product to court, claiming that they advertise the meal as only taking three and a half minutes to make, but it takes longer, seeking $5 million from its manufacturer, Kraft Heinz.
Florida resident, Amanda Ramirez, sued Velveeta’s parent company, Kraft Heinz, on November 18 for at least $5 million over false advertising claims because of what she terms as deceptive and fraudulent packaging by the company.
Ramirez claims that the microwavable shell and cheese pasta by Velveeta takes more than the advertised three and a half minutes to prepare even though its packaging states that it will be “ready in three and a half minutes,” which constitutes fraud.
Ramirez’s lawyers filed the lawsuit in the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida. It states that for the company to provide customers with a product that takes three and a half minutes to be ready, the product needs to cook in the microwave for a lesser period to account for all the necessary preparation steps to make the meal.
The suit includes all the five steps in the packaging required to prepare the mac and cheese product. It claims that the extra steps, including removing the lid, adding water to it, microwaving, and stirring in the cheese sauce, make the cooking time significantly more than the advertised three and a half minutes.
According to the lawsuit, the product label should state that the meal takes three and a half minutes in the microwave, which would be a more accurate representation of the length of time. It claims that consumers seeing the advertised time believe that that is the total time it takes to prepare it. However, three and a half minutes is just the time to complete one of the five steps.
Ramirez claims that Velveeta is priced at a premium as eight 2.39 oz cups cost not less than $10.99, excluding tax. That cost is higher than it would be if the Velveeta packaging did not include misleading representations, i.e., the product is priced a bit higher than other similar products which do not have allegedly deceptive instructions.
The suit has the potential to become a class action settlement as Ramirez filed it individually and on behalf of other people because the product has been sold across the country in different stores.
Ramirez’s lawsuit seeks at least $5 million in damages, including statutory and punitive damages exclusive of interest and cost. The plaintiff also wants a judge to order the company to stop its deceptive advertising.
The Kraft Heinz Company released a statement dismissing the lawsuit as frivolous, saying they would defend themselves against the allegations made in the complaint.
The lawsuit accuses the company of profiting off false advertising, primarily because consumers have grown to trust the well-known brand and expect the company to be honest with them.
Sheehan and Associates, a well-known New York law firm and a West Palm Beach-based firm, filed the lawsuit. Spenser Sheehan of Sheehan and Associates is known for suing big companies that make consumables in grocery stores, including Betty Crocker, Keebler, Frito Lay, and Strawberry pop tarts.
