Lawsuit Claims 'Addictive' Food Deliberately Sold to Kids by Industry Giants

A lawsuit has been filed against 11 major food corporations—including Kraft Heinz, The Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, Nestlé USA and Mars Incorporated—for deliberately conspiring to create addictive products, marketing them to children and fueling health crises in the U.S. Morgan & Morgan is representing Bryce Martinez, from Pennsylvania, who blames these companies' ultra-processed products for his type 2 diabetes and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease, with which he was diagnosed at the age of 16. "Our lawsuit alleges that the invention of ultra-processed foods, imitation-like foods, that started in the 1980s, has systematically and to this point irrevocably changed the health of our children," said Mike Morgan, Morgan & Morgan partner, in a press conference. "This is the moment that science has caught up [with justice] and it's time to address this case to get justice for Bryce Martinez and all the people like him." Rene Rocha, Morgan & Morgan attorney, said in the same press conference, "We believe this is a turning point and, we hope, something that changes the status quo forever going forward." Ultra-processed foods (UPF) are defined in the lawsuit as "industrially produced edible substances that are imitations of food" and as manufactured products made with chemically modified ingredients, additives and industrial techniques. "These are new inventions that are stitched together with laboratory chemicals and other additives, and have fundamental differences from what we used to know as food throughout the course of our human history," said Rocha. Newsweek reached out for comment via email to all the companies accused in this lawsuit, namely Kraft Heinz, Mondelez International, Post Holdings, The Coca-Cola Company, PepsiCo, General Mills, Nestlé USA, Kellanova, W.K. Kellogg Co, Mars Incorporated and Conagra Brands. Dr. Chris van Tulleken—doctor, broadcaster and author known for speaking out against UPF—told Newsweek he had spoken to these lawyers while they prepared their complaint. "The pandemic of diet-related disease and especially obesity that is sweeping the globe is 'commerciogenic'—driven by commercial incentives," said van Tulleken. "This means it needs robust regulatory approaches of the type we used to control tobacco. One of those approaches is this sort of legal action."

Up to three-quarters of the American food supply, and two-thirds of children's diets in the U.S., consist of UPF, which studies cited by the lawsuit have linked to higher risks of diseases such as cancer, heart disease, irritable bowel syndrome, obesity, diabetes, dementia and poor mental health. The lawsuit alleges that large food corporations were taken over by "Big Tobacco" in the 1980s and thereafter used "their cigarette playbook" to develop addictive products, that they "aggressively marketed to children and minorities." "They actively used, as alleged in our complaint, the same scientists that they were using to study the addictiveness of cigarettes and increase the addictiveness of cigarettes, and brought them in to formulate these ultra-processed foods," said Rocha. Quoting scientific studies, the lawsuit alleges that 14 percent of adults and 12 percent of children in the U.S. demonstrate addictive behaviors in response to UPF and attribute this to a deliberate strategy by large food corporations. "The story of ultra-processed foods is an egregious example of companies prioritizing profits over the health and safety of the people who buy their products," said Morgan in a statement. "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." Among the allegations are that the companies failed to disclose or warn consumers of the dangers of eating UPF; that they falsely marketed their products as foods that could be safely and frequently eaten by children; and that they knowingly subjected consumers to the risks of lifelong illnesses. "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," said Rocha in a statement. "It's a meticulous complaint and scientifically it stands up," said van Tulleken. "The case against a diet high in industrially processed foods is clear, and companies develop these products to drive excess consumption and fail to warn consumers about the harms." Sarah Gallo, senior vice president of product policy at the Consumer Brands Association, told Newsweek on behalf of the food and beverage industry: "Food safety and protecting the integrity of the food supply is priority number one for food and beverage manufacturers. "Attempting to classify foods as unhealthy simply because they are processed, or demonizing food by ignoring its full nutrient content, misleads consumers and exacerbates health disparities. "We fully support providing consumers the dignity of choice when making decisions about healthy dietary patterns and the markers of America's household brands are continuously innovating to meet the health and lifestyle needs of their customers." Do you have a tip on a food story that Newsweek should be covering? Is there a nutrition concern that's worrying you? Let us know via science@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice and your story could be featured in Newsweek. UPDATED, 12/12/2024, 5:00 a.m.: This article was updated to include comment from Dr. Chris van Tulleken.