A California jury recently found that R.C. Bigelow, Inc., the well-known manufacturer of Bigelow teas, intentionally or recklessly misled consumers by claiming some of its teabags were “Manufactured in the USA.” The company paid a steep price for this mislabeling, with the jury awarding the class action plaintiffs $2.36 million.
For Bigelow, the kettle was near boiling well before trial. The Court had already found that the label “Manufactured in the USA” was false because the tea leaves were grown and processed abroad. It rejected Bigelow’s argument that the statement referenced the blending and packaging of the teabags, all of which took place in the United States.
The court explained that, because the tea leaves were processed abroad, they were no longer a raw material when imported. … As the tea leaves were undisputably processed abroad and were the “very essence” or “guts” of the tea bags, the court found the statement “Manufactured in the U.S.A.” to be “literally false.
