General Mills announced in August of 2018 they will be removing the “Made With 100% Natural Whole Grain Oats” tagline from its line of Nature Valley granola bars, due to a settlement of a lawsuit filed against them over the claim that glyphosate was found in their products. Three consumer groups filed the suit after it was discovered through outside research that glyphosate was found in a number of various food products.
The Nature Valley bars were discovered to have a higher than normal amount of glyphosate. The lawsuit also alleged that the tagline for the bars was misleading for a consumer assuming the ingredients in the bar would all be considered as ‘natural.’ Currently there is no set legal definition for the word “natural” which can allow for marketing strategies that lead an individual to purchase a product that may not necessarily be as natural as it is advertised.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has determined that no more than 30 ppm (parts per million) of glyphosate is allowed to be present in foods such as granola bars. In comparison, the Nature Valley bars were found to have 0.45 ppm and other grain-based foods like Cheerios and Quaker Oats which are also products of General Mills were found to have related high levels of the chemical. Glyphosate is a controversial chemical, recently deemed by the International Agency of Cancer to be a possible carcinogen that can cause serious health issues.
Glyphosate has also recently been in the spotlight due to lawsuits faced by Monsanto Corporation regarding their product Roundup and a potential link to the diagnosis of non-Hodgkin’s Lymphoma. More information on Roundup and current litigation developments can be found here.
Contact our office at (303) 327-9988 if you or a loved one have been affected by glyphosate in these food products to schedule a free consultation and speak with one of our experienced attorneys.