A legal challenge has been launched against Cold Stone Creamery, a popular ice cream chain, following allegations of deceptive advertising by a Long Island resident who discovered that the pistachio ice cream may lack actual pistachios.
Jenna Marie Duncan, hailing from Farmingdale, New York, initiated a class action lawsuit against Cold Stone Creamery, asserting that when she purchased pistachio ice cream from a Levittown location in July 2022, she reasonably expected it to contain pistachios.
However, Duncan later found out from the company’s website that the ice cream contained “pistachio flavoring” composed of water, ethanol, propylene glycol, natural and artificial flavor, Yellow 5, and Blue 1, as outlined in the lawsuit.
Documentation of ice cream ingredients on Cold Stone’s website confirms the presence of “pistachio flavoring” in the pistachio ice cream, prompting Duncan to argue that had she known it lacked pistachios, she would not have purchased it or would have paid considerably less.
In the lawsuit, Duncan emphasized consumers’ anticipation of real pistachios in pistachio ice cream, contrasting Cold Stone’s practice with competitors such as Häagen-Dazs and Ben & Jerry’s, both of which include actual pistachios in their versions.
Additionally, the lawsuit alleges that Cold Stone’s other flavors like mango, coconut, mint, orange, butter pecan ice cream, and orange sorbet are similarly misrepresented, merely flavored after their named ingredients, which Duncan argues is contrary to consumer expectations.
The defendant in the case, Kahala Franchising LLC, owner of Cold Stone Creamery franchises, Wetzel’s Pretzels, Baja Fresh, and Blimpie, among others, has moved to dismiss the case, citing detailed ingredient lists available online.
Despite Kahala’s efforts, a federal judge in New York has allowed the class action lawsuit to proceed. U.S. District Court Judge Gary R. Brown, in his ruling, acknowledged the intricate question raised by the case concerning consumers’ reasonable expectations and whether the absence of actual pistachios in pistachio ice cream could leave them dissatisfied.
