Jump to content
This site uses cookies. Continued use is acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. More Info... ×
  • Welcome to Celiac.com!

    You have found your celiac tribe! Join us and ask questions in our forum, share your story, and connect with others.




  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A1):



    Celiac.com Sponsor (A1-M):


  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Our Content
    eNewsletter
    Donate
  • Jefferson Adams
    Jefferson Adams

    Did General Mills Deliberately Ignore Complaints About Problems with Gluten-Free Cheerios?

    Reviewed and edited by a celiac disease expert.

    Consumers seek to reinstate suit against General Mills for Gluten Free Cheerios recall.

    Did General Mills Deliberately Ignore Complaints About Problems with Gluten-Free Cheerios? - Photo: CC--Mike Mozart
    Caption: Photo: CC--Mike Mozart

    Celiac.com 04/24/2017 - The fallout continues from General Mills' recall of nearly 2 million boxes of Gluten Free Cheerios and Honey Nut Cheerios in 2015, which occurred after workers at a California plant accidentally loaded gluten-free oat flour into trucks that had been holding wheat flour, which contains gluten, and which then contaminated batches of "gluten-free" cereal produced with the grain from those trucks.

    In comments to the U.S. Ninth Circuit court, plaintiffs representing a proposed class of consumers claimed that a lower court had erred in dismissing their lawsuit on the grounds that the company's recall program made the claims baseless. They asked that the court allow their lawsuit against General Mills to continue. The suit is based on claims that the supposedly gluten-free Cheerios that had been made with the wrong flour, and that the cereal had sickened consumers.

    Celiac.com Sponsor (A12):
    Lead plaintiff Christopher Hamilton told the panel that a refund program alone does not moot a claim for damages, as courts have held that, while refund programs do moot restitution claims, they do not moot claims for damages and injunctive relief, such as Hamilton's. "Indeed, in a case based on the exact facts present here, a court in California held that the Cheerios recall program did not moot a consumer's damages claim because the defendants did not satisfy the plaintiff's claims for statutory damages and injunctive relief," said Hamilton.

    Hamilton, who has celiac disease, brought his suit in March 2016 after buying the supposedly "gluten-free," wheat-contaminated Cheerios. One sample revealed 43 parts per million of gluten, more than twice the legal ceiling for the "gluten-free" label, Hamilton said in his complaint.

    Still, to the layperson, Hamilton's request for damages and injunctive relief invites questions. First, since the company issued a full product recall, what type of injunctive relief would they be seeking? Second, regarding damages, exactly what type of monetary damages would be claimed? Did these plaintiffs incur medical expenses, missed work or other costs? That is not made clear in these filings.

    When U.S. District Judge Michael McShane dismissed the original suit in July, he did so based on the fact that General Mills did issue a full product recall. In his statements on the matter, the judge wrote: "Rather than mitigate his damages by accepting General Mills' recall/refund offer, Hamilton is suing General Mills for false labeling, marketing and promotion of the product. Hamilton paints a discreet [sic] manufacturing mishap as a grand scheme of deceptive advertising, marketing and labeling." Judge McShane added, "I find this to be creative at best."

    But Hamilton says that he should be permitted to amend his complaint to include claims that the recall was delayed, and that the company was aware of complaints from sick consumers as early as July 2015. Hamilton also wishes to include allegations that General Mills deliberately ignored warnings from a dietitian that General Mills gluten-free testing was inferior.

    The case is Christopher Hamilton v. General Mills Inc. et al., case number 16-36004, in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.

    Read more at Law360.com.



    User Feedback

    Recommended Comments

    Guest Susan

    Posted

    If General Mills tested every batch of final product BEFORE sending it to stores, these boxes would not have made it into the hands of consumers. This is clearly a total failure in their process. Yet, they continue to ignore the very real danger to consumers by continuing to use this flawed testing process. If General Mills was honest about wanting to produce a gluten free product, they would have made changes so such a situation can never happen again. They have been secretive from the start.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest admin

    Posted

    If General Mills tested every batch of final product BEFORE sending it to stores, these boxes would not have made it into the hands of consumers. This is clearly a total failure in their process. Yet, they continue to ignore the very real danger to consumers by continuing to use this flawed testing process. If General Mills was honest about wanting to produce a gluten free product, they would have made changes so such a situation can never happen again. They have been secretive from the start.

    No company tests every box or package of everything they label "gluten-free," not even gluten-free certification organizations would require this, as the associated costs would make the price of the product astronomical.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest K2

    True, no company tests every box but they should test every batch - especially if they have a new production line and/or a shared facility. This case is critical because if the courts don't take it seriously, other manufacturers will know there are no consequences to claiming "Gluten Free" erroneously in the future. When I've contacted other food companies in the past over various issues, they track by batches and they take action, they follow up. Now that I know General Mills doesn't take my health seriously, I can take my own actions by not buying their products. I certainly wouldn't give Cheerios to children with known gluten issues, given that GM treats it so casually. At a very bare minimum, simple training of their staff about what is required for gluten free manufacturing would have avoided the entire event. But again, they apparently don't take it seriously.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest Laura

    Posted

    The "Gluten Dude" was one participate invited to visit the manufacturing plant back when gluten-free cheerios was first developed by the company. *see Open Original Shared Link

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest Jefferson Adams

    Posted

    True, no company tests every box but they should test every batch - especially if they have a new production line and/or a shared facility. This case is critical because if the courts don't take it seriously, other manufacturers will know there are no consequences to claiming "Gluten Free" erroneously in the future. When I've contacted other food companies in the past over various issues, they track by batches and they take action, they follow up. Now that I know General Mills doesn't take my health seriously, I can take my own actions by not buying their products. I certainly wouldn't give Cheerios to children with known gluten issues, given that GM treats it so casually. At a very bare minimum, simple training of their staff about what is required for gluten free manufacturing would have avoided the entire event. But again, they apparently don't take it seriously.

    With all of the people supposedly having gluten reactions to General Mills products, not one person has provided the batch info that is printed on every box of Cheerios. To date, no one we know of has confirmed reporting such information to the FDA, or to General Mills. This information would easily enable such cases to be verified or debunked. It's also possible that adverse reactions may be due to oat sensitivity, which affects about 8% of celiac sufferers. Until clear evidence is presented to the contrary, claims that General Mills knowingly disregards the health of people with celiac disease and gluten intolerance seem unsupported by the facts. Plenty of people with celiac disease have reported tolerating Cheerios just fine, though our own position is for individuals to exercise their own judgement in matters of their own health and diet.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest Harold

    Posted

    Whether or not GM knew or takes steps to remedy their processing of gluten-free grains, I'm not sure why anyone with celiac or gluten sensitivity would indulge in mass produced food products. After having been sick most of my life (thank you antibiotics), I've learned that even if everything checks out ok, there's always the chance that someone, somewhere, either believes gluten-free is psychosomatic or wants to do people harm, and will take steps to make it so. The more processed the food, the more hands that touch it, the higher the chance that something goes awry. If you're willing, or strong enough, to take that risk, more power to you, but I am not.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites
    Guest Jeff Adams

    Posted

    Whether or not GM knew or takes steps to remedy their processing of gluten-free grains, I'm not sure why anyone with celiac or gluten sensitivity would indulge in mass produced food products. After having been sick most of my life (thank you antibiotics), I've learned that even if everything checks out ok, there's always the chance that someone, somewhere, either believes gluten-free is psychosomatic or wants to do people harm, and will take steps to make it so. The more processed the food, the more hands that touch it, the higher the chance that something goes awry. If you're willing, or strong enough, to take that risk, more power to you, but I am not.

    Thanks for your comment. Yes, eating minimally processed, whole foods is likely a smart nutritional practice. However, I would remind you that many of the gluten-free products that celiacs know, trust, and consume regularly would be considered "mass produced," so I´m not sure that mass production necessarily means more gluten-contamination.

    Link to comment
    Share on other sites


    Create an account or sign in to comment

    You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

    Create an account

    Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

    Register a new account

    Sign in

    Already have an account? Sign in here.

    Sign In Now

  • Get Celiac.com Updates:
    Support Celiac.com:
    Donate
  • About Me

    Jefferson Adams

    Jefferson Adams is Celiac.com's senior writer and Digital Content Director. He earned his B.A. and M.F.A. at Arizona State University. His articles, essays, poems, stories and book reviews have appeared in numerous magazines, journals, and websites, including North American Project, Antioch Review, Caliban, Mississippi Review, Slate, and more. He is the author of more than 2,500 articles on celiac disease. His university coursework includes studies in science, scientific methodology, biology, anatomy, physiology, medicine, logic, and advanced research. He previously devised health and medical content for Colgate, Dove, Pfizer, Sharecare, Walgreens, and more. Jefferson has spoken about celiac disease to the media, including an appearance on the KQED radio show Forum, and is the editor of numerous books, including "Cereal Killers" by Scott Adams and Ron Hoggan, Ed.D.

    >VIEW ALL ARTICLES BY JEFFERSON ADAMS

     


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):
    Celiac.com Sponsor (A17):





    Celiac.com Sponsors (A17-M):




  • Related Articles

    Jefferson Adams
    Cheerios Sales Rise After Switch To Gluten-Free
    Celiac.com 01/21/2016 - With sales of non-gluten-free cereals enduring a slow, consistent downward slide in just about every category, gluten-free cereals have been one of the few bright spots for cereal manufacturers.
    In an effort to combat those falling cereal sales across its existing product line, manufacturer General Mills released five gluten-free Cheerios products.
    Initial results suggest that their plan is working, at least somewhat. According to General Mills, sales of non-discounted, full-price gluten-free varieties of Cheerios grew 3% to 4% last quarter, offering the fist improvement after multiple quarters of declining sales.
    This is particularly good news for General Mills, as it follows on the heels of an embarrassing recall of 1.8 million boxes of Cheerios and Honey...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 02/02/2016 - General Mills seems to be having a hard time catching a break lately, especially when it comes to their new gluten-free options.
    After some minor good news that their new gluten-free versions of Cheerios breakfast cereal was driving a small increase in an otherwise falling cereal market, the company has found itself on the receiving end of several lawsuits.
    In the latest lawsuit, a Kentucky woman is suing the cereal producer over what she claims are misleading labels on their gluten-free products, including gluten-free Cheerios.
    In her class-action lawsuit filed Dec. 18 in the Eastern District of California, Jacklyn Haddix, on behalf of herself and all others similarly situated, alleges that General Mills, General Mills Sales, General Mills Operations,...


    Jefferson Adams
    General Mills Sued Again Over Recalled 'Gluten-Free' Cheerios
    Celiac.com 03/28/2016 - An Oregon man who claims to have celiac disease filed another proposed class action suit against General Mills in federal court recently.
    The company recalled nearly 2 million boxes of the cereal last year after what they claimed was a mistake at a local packaging plant. That recall incident has spurred several lawsuits already, which were covered in two previous articles, General Mills Sued Over Recalled Gluten-free Cheerios, and General Mills Sued Again, This Time for Misleading Labels on Gluten-free Cheerios.
    In the latest suit, named plaintiff, Christopher Hamilton, of Marion County, Oregon, individually and for all others similarly situated, filed a class action lawsuit Feb. 29 in U.S. District Court for the District of Oregon Eugene Division against...


    Jefferson Adams
    Celiac.com 08/17/2016 - Cereal-maker General Mills is looking to patent method and system for manufacturing gluten-free oats.
    The application for patent protection covers numerous mechanical separation processes on a variety of grains, including oat grains and gluten-containing grains, using, among other things, width grading steps, multiple length grading steps, aspirating steps and a potential de-bearding step.
    Federal labeling regulations require products labeled 'gluten-free' to have gluten levels below 20 ppm. The process allow the production of oat grains with gluten levels below 20 parts per million, and optimally at 10 ppm.
    The resulting oats are gluten-free oats and suitable for use in a variety of gluten-free oat food products, including cereal and granola products,...


  • Recent Activity

    1. - StaciField replied to StaciField's topic in Related Issues & Disorders
      8

      My bone structure is disintegrating and I’m having to have my teeth removed

    2. - Wheatwacked replied to More2Learn's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      2

      Celiac Maybe a Possibility?

    3. - John.B posted a topic in Gluten-Free Foods, Products, Shopping & Medications
      0

      Allergy Meds

    4. - Scott Adams replied to Vozzyv's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      5

      Weird Symptoms

    5. - Jeff Platt replied to Vozzyv's topic in Celiac Disease Pre-Diagnosis, Testing & Symptoms
      5

      Weird Symptoms


  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A19):



  • Member Statistics

    • Total Members
      126,132
    • Most Online (within 30 mins)
      7,748

    Bonnie Hercolini
    Newest Member
    Bonnie Hercolini
    Joined

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A20):


  • Forum Statistics

    • Total Topics
      120.9k
    • Total Posts
      69.2k

  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A22):





  • Celiac.com Sponsor (A21):



  • Popular Now

    • Vozzyv
      5
    • Kathleen JJ
    • Captain173
      10
    • jjiillee
      7
    • ShRa
      9
  • Popular Articles

    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
    • Scott Adams
  • Upcoming Events

×
×
  • Create New...