USA | Morgan & Morgan has filed a first-of-its-kind lawsuit against food industry behemoths Kraft Heinz Company, Mondelēz International, Inc., and others.
The companies have allegedly been engineering their ultra-processed food products to be addictive and marketing those products towards children, allegedly causing chronic disease in children.
In the lawsuit, plaintiff Bryce Martinez alleged the actions of Kraft Heinz, Mondelēz International, Inc., and others caused him to develop Type 2 Diabetes and Non-Alcoholic Fatty Liver Disease by age 16.
As a result of Defendants’ alleged actions, the lawsuit alleged that Martinez suffered from severe chronic illness and will live the rest of his life sick, suffering, and getting sicker.
Diseases such as Type 2 diabetes and fatty liver disease, both of which were nearly unheard of in children 40 years ago, have now affected the lives of thousands of American children.
The complaint detailed the strategic and calculated actions that Kraft Heinz, Mondelēz and others allegedly took to target children with addictive ultra-processed foods, including internal memos, strategic meetings and the extensive research they allegedly conducted to leverage our biology and neurology to create addictive substances.
The lawsuit has referenced scientific research that found that ultra-processed foods significantly increased disease risks compared to less processed foods, even if they contained the same amount of fat, sugar, salt, carbohydrates, and other nutrients as comparable, less processed foods.
“The story of ultra-processed foods is an egregious example of companies prioritising profits over the health and safety of the people who buy their products,” said Morgan & Morgan partner Mike Morgan.
“The consequences of these companies’ alleged actions have allegedly harmed thousands of children and families. Executives at the defendant companies have allegedly known for at least a quarter-century that ultra-processed foods would contribute to illnesses in children, but these companies allegedly ignored the public health risks in pursuit of profits.”
The lawsuit alleged the problem remained pervasive among American children due to the food industry’s targeted marketing toward children and cited dozens of studies demonstrating ultra-processed foods' widespread health effects.
“The defendants allegedly maximised their profits at the expense of the health of American children,” said Morgan & Morgan attorney Rene Rocha.
“These companies allegedly use the tobacco industry’s playbook to target children, especially Black and Hispanic children, with integrated marketing tie-ins with cartoons, toys and games, along with social media advertising. Our goal is to hold these companies responsible for their alleged efforts to make ultra-processed foods as addictive as possible and get them into the hands of children.”
In addition to Kraft Heinz and Mondelēz, the litigation will seek accountability from other primary food and beverage companies allegedly employing similar technologies and strategies as the tobacco industry.
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