A United States federal judge dismissed a class action lawsuit against Trident Seafoods and Costco late last week. The suit alleged that the two companies’ Kirkland Signature brand of Wild Alaskan Fish Oil does not contain the amounts of omega fatty acids that it claims to contain.
New York U.S. District Court Judge Arthur D. Spatt dismissed the complaint, after the plaintiff, Ricarlos Guzman, submitted a voluntary dismissal of the case. Guzman did not give a reason for the dismissal.
The class action complaint, filed in February, 2017, said that, according to independent lab tests, the Kirkland fish oil product does not contain the listed amount of “other omega fatty acids.”
Moreover, there is no scientific literature available to support the contention that omega-11 fatty acids are typically found in fish oil.”
According to the complaint, Trident and Costco “developed and knowingly employ a marketing strategy designed to deceive customers.”
“The only conceivable purpose of this scheme is to stimulate sales and enhance defendants’ profits,” the lawsuit claimed.
Joe Bundrant, CEO of Trident Seafoods, told SeafoodSource after the dismissal his company was happy with the judge’s decision.
“We go to great lengths to ensure the accuracy of our labeling, and we will always vigorously defend ourselves and our customers,” he said.
