Lawsuit: Cal-Maine, Walmart used false claim on organic egg label

A class-action lawsuit has been filed against Walmart and Cal-Maine Foods, with the plaintiffs claiming the two companies misled consumers about the conditions in which hens that laid Walmart store brand Organic Marketside eggs were raised. According to Hagens Berman, the legal firm involved in filing the suit, consumers paid high prices for what they were told were eggs laid by hens “free to roam, nest and perch in a protected barn with outdoor access.” However, according to the lawsuit, Walmart and Cal-Maine knew the hens were raised in barns with enclosed porches, and were unable to touch the soil or vegetation surrounding the barns.The suit, which was filed on January 8 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California, seeks reimbursement for consumers who paid premium prices for Walmart’s Organic Marketside store-brand eggs, which were sold as being laid by hens with outdoor access. The suit also seeks an injunction from the court to force Walmart and Cal-Maine to end the marketing of Organic Marketside eggs.