In a bid to dodge a US lawsuit, Swiss chocolatier Lindt & Sprungli has scuppered its personal claims in regards to the excellence of its merchandise — a cornerstone of its advertising and marketing technique.
Lindt has unsuccessfully tried to finish a category motion lawsuit in the US, launched in February 2023 following an article by a US shopper affiliation questioning the presence of heavy metals in darkish chocolate bars from a number of producers, together with two bars produced by Lindt.
“In its defence technique, the corporate has dismantled its personal guarantees of high quality,” claimed the Swiss newspaper NZZ am Sonntag, raking over a September US court docket choice.
The chocolatier’s attorneys maintained that the phrases “excellence” and “expertly crafted with the best elements”, printed on its bars, have been unactionable “puffery”, in accordance with a call by the Japanese District of New York district court docket.
The court docket, which dismissed Lindt’s movement, outlined product puffery as “exaggerated promoting, blustering, and boasting upon which no cheap purchaser would rely”.
The Swiss newspaper Le Temps mentioned Lindt was “strolling a tightrope” with this “daring defence”.
Lindt’s excessive revenue margins are resulting from “the truth that customers are keen to pay extra for its industrial candies due to their high quality picture”, the each day famous.
The court docket choice mentioned the plaintiffs introduced the category motion towards Lindt alleging that the agency “deceptively marketed their darkish chocolate bars as ‘expertly crafted with the best elements’ and ‘protected, in addition to pleasant’, when the bars actually contained vital quantities of lead”.
Lindt didn’t instantly reply to a request for remark.
Shoppers within the US states of Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Nevada and New York had taken authorized motion on the again of a 2022 article by the US shopper organisation Client Experiences, regarding the ranges of lead and cadmium in darkish chocolate bars.
The organisation examined 28 bars offered in the US. One of many Lindt bars was amongst eight discovered to have a excessive stage of cadmium, whereas one other was amongst 10 with a excessive stage of lead, although neither had the very best ranges.
Two of its bars, marketed beneath the US model Ghirardelli, have been among the many 5 labeled as “safer decisions”.
Whereas bars from different producers had larger concentrations of heavy metals — together with from natural manufacturers — customers insisted within the class motion lawsuit that that they had paid premium costs for Lindt as a result of they believed they have been “buying high quality and protected darkish chocolate”.
Switzerland may be very hooked up to the standard of its items, its calling card to promote merchandise which can be usually dearer given the excessive manufacturing prices within the rich Alpine nation.
