A lawsuit has been filed in the United States Court for the Southern District of New York against Panera Bread Company.  The litigant Jose Izquierdo alleges "deceptive and fraudulent" labeling of blueberry bagels.  The lawsuit filed on March 30th claims that synthetic blueberries comprising artificial ingredients are the major blueberry component of Panera bagels.

The lawsuit alleges that Panera intended to mislead consumers into believing that the blueberry content of bagels consisted of real blueberries.  This contention is contrary to the statutory nutrition label which clearly indicated that “blueberry bites” are imitation blueberries listed on the ingredient list above the real infused dried blueberry ingredient.

In many cases, commercial claims especially involving prestigious brands invite shakedown lawsuits by avaricious members of the tort bar.  In the case of Panera Bread their claim "food you can trust: we are advocates for clean food, we are committed to menu transparency, we are dedicated to having a positive impact on the food system" will be difficult to defend even if the case is dismissed. Negative publicity will be prejudicial to the image generated by Panera for their brand.

There are obvious lessons from this case regarding commercial claims, irrespective of disposition whether by dismissal or settlement.