Thanks to a nearly $9 million settlement against Breyers Ice Cream, customers who purchased the Natural Vanilla flavor within the past eight years may be eligible for cash payments.
The original class action lawsuit, McKinley et al. v. Conopco, Inc. et al., was filed on June 26 in the Supreme Court of the State of New York, Bronx County, alleging that the ice cream company falsely advertised “vanilla” on its product as if the flavor came only from the vanilla plant, when in fact it contained non-vanilla plant flavors.
Defendants Unilever United States, Inc., owner of Breyers, and Conopco, Inc., the advertising agency with which Breyers works, “dispute all of these allegations and deny any wrongdoing,” according to the settlement, and the court “has not decided who is right. ”
“While we do not comment on lawsuits, Breyers Natural Vanilla is made with natural, Rainforest Alliance Certified vanilla, and is carefully crafted to deliver the quality and taste people have loved for more than 150 years,” a spokesperson for Breyers to TODAY.com.
According to a press release from the New York State Supreme Court, within one year after the settlement becomes final, Unilever will be required to “develop a new product formulation” that does not contain vanilla derived from non-vanilla plants.
The defendants have also been ordered to compensate the plaintiffs through an $8.85 million settlement fund. This includes those who purchased Breyers Natural Vanilla ice cream in any size in the US from April 21, 2016 through August 14, 2024. A full list of the products can be found here.
The lawsuit was filed by New York firms Reese LLP and Sheehan and Associates, by Spencer Sheehan, who has earned himself the nickname “Vanilla Vigilante” for filing more than 400 such lawsuits targeting products on the shelves from supermarkets, including (but not limited to) Tostitos, Velveeta, Kellogg’s and Fireball Cinnamon Whiskey.
How to request a cash settlement
According to the settlement website, cash payments will be awarded to class members who submit the following by February 19, 2025:
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Valid claims with proof of purchase ($1 per product without limit).
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Valid claims without proof of purchase ($1 per product with a maximum of eight products).
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Valid claims for both proof-of-purchase and proof-of-purchase products (combined cash benefits).
Under the settlement, only one claim form can be submitted per household. And if the number of valid claims exceeds $8.85 million, payments will be distributed equally to each member of the settlement class.
Customers who reserve the right to sue the company themselves can forfeit the cash payment from this specific settlement by completing an exclusion form found here, or by sending a written exclusion request to the claims administrator by October 31 or email.
On November 21, the court will hold a fairness hearing to decide whether or not the settlement is reasonable. The court will consider any objections.
“Please do not call the court or the court clerk for settlement information,” the court wrote.
Instead, interested parties can find out more information by visiting VanillaIceCreamSettlement.com or calling 1-888-603-5137. Declaration forms can be found here.
This article was originally published on TODAY.com
