A Shelby County man has filed a federal class action lawsuit against grocery chain The Fresh Market saying that the company does not provide federally-mandated nutritional information on its baked goods.
Joe Myhand, a resident of Shelby County who filed the lawsuit, usually shops at The Fresh Market location on U.S. 280. According to the 34-page lawsuit, the prepackaged containers of bakery goods he bought from the Fresh Market’s bakery department do not give information mandated by the Nutrition Labeling and Education Act, which requires foods to bear labeling with nutrient content.
The products – cookies and muffins, according to exhibits in the lawsuit – came in containers without labels showing calories, carbohydrates and other nutritional information. The suit seeks damages for all Americans who have bought baked goods at The Fresh Market, contending that by not providing the information, the goods are “misleading” consumers with misbranded food.
“Despite being notified of their nutrition labeling requirements, Fresh Market has continued to ‘skirt’ their legal obligation to the law and to the American public,” the lawsuit states. “The manner that Fresh Market places their bakery products for sale is important in defining its responsibility. Fresh Market has not to date placed either the old nutrition label or the new label on their subject bakery goods.”
Fresh Market, based in North Carolina, did not immediately respond to requests for a comment.
