General Mills sues Chobani over false claims on Greek yogurt

US-based General Mills is reportedly suing Greek yogurt maker Chobani for falsely comparing its Yoplait Greek 100 to bug spray.

The consumer foods company filed a lawsuit against Chobani in the US District Court in Minneapolis. The lawsuit claims the advertising campaign for Chobani Simply 100, a Greek-style yogurt with 100 calories, was faulty.

The advertising campaign alleges Yoplait Greek 100 contains a pesticide that is used to kill bugs, General Mills stated in its complaint.

Minneapolis Star Tribune cited General Mills saying: "In fact, the television commercial that leads the Chobani attack campaign goes so far to convey that, because Yoplait Greek 100 is laced with a pesticide, it is so dangerous and unfit to eat that consumers should discard it as garbage."

Chobani also claimed Yoplait is ‘toxic’ as it contains potassium sorbate, which is a preservative.

General Mills filed in the lawsuit that potassium sorbate is considered to be a safe and non-lethal food ingredient by several federal agencies, including the US Food and Drug Administration, which considers potassium sorbate a safe food ingredient.

However, Chobani’s website provides a link to a document from the US Environmental Protection Agency that lists ingredients that are categorised under ‘minimum risk pesticide products.’ The list includes potassium sorbate, along with other ingredients, including cinnamon, cloves, garlic and peppermint oil.

Yogurt maker Dannon also threatened to sue Chobani over the same advertisement campaign, in which Chobani criticised Dannon’s Light & Fit for its contents.

Before the threat could be converted into a lawsuit, Chobani sued Dannon in federal court in New York, seeking a declaration that its accusations for Simply 100 do not come under false and deceptive advertising.

Dannon filed a counterclaim against Chobani, justifying that chlorine is not added to sucralose.

Chobani chief marketing and brand officer Peter McGuinness said in a statement: "While I am not surprised, I am disappointed that Dannon and General Mills are focused on stopping people from having the facts about artificial sweeteners and artificial preservatives.

"This campaign is about giving people truthful and accurate information so they can make more informed decisions about the food they buy."

The disagreements over contents has emerged at a time when consumers are becoming increasingly aware of packaged food labels for artificial ingredients.