Frito-Lay Sued Over Claims That Tostitos and Sun Chips are 'All Natural'

Bummer! Once you get past the obligatory present openings and expressions of holiday cheer, it is time to put your feet up, turn on the tube and veg out, preferably with a ready supply artery-clogging, high salt content snacks.

The folks at Frito-Lay have worked hard to reduce the guilt in these lifestyle choices by appending the words 'All Natural' to the packaging so that we may delude ourselves into believing that we are making an even slightly less health-impacting menu choice. Now, we know those claims are probably, to be polite, 'open to interpretation,' but what the heck: we have earned our simple and guilty pleasures the hard way in these times of economic uncertainty and mounting stress.

Turns out that 'All Natural,' as our buddies at Frito-Lay describe it, may have less to do with simple ingredients found in nature than with nutritionally-oriented products concocted from elements or compounds whose antecedents may have, at one time, been found in nature, sort of.

But hey, it's Christmas, give 'em credit for trying. JL

Jack Neff reports in Advertising Age:

A federal class-action lawsuit in California claims Frito-Lay brands Tostitos and Sun Chips labeled as "all-natural" really aren't because they're made using corn and oil from genetically modified crops. The suit, filed by the Milberg law firm of Los Angeles in U.S. District Court for Central California earlier this month, notes packaging and website advertising describing the products as all-natural and free of "artificial" or "synthetic" ingredients. Ads for Tostitos, for example, have cited the fact that they contain only three ingredients -- corn, salt and oil.

But the complaint, which seeks unspecified compensatory and punitive damages on behalf of Frito-Lay consumers, notes that Monsanto Co., which pioneered development and distribution of genetically modified crops, defines them as having "genetic makeup altered to exhibit specific traits that are not naturally theirs."

In a statement, the PepsiCo unit said it's confident its packaging and advertising meets federal standards. The U.S. Department of Agriculture's definition of "organic" products excludes those with genetically modified ingredients, but no similar standard from the USDA or Food and Drug Administration applies to use of the term "natural."