Heinz has been ordered to pay $2.25 million for a misleading health claim that its Little Kids Shredz products were beneficial to toddlers.
In March, the Federal Court ruled Heinz had breached the Australian Consumer Law by marketing its Shredz products as healthy for 1-3 year-olds and that its nutritionists should have known this was not the case.
The Shredz product range included three varieties: ‘peach apple and veg’, ‘berries apple and veg’, and ‘strawberry and apple with chia seeds’, which were available in supermarkets from 2013 until at least May 2016. The products have since been removed.
At a hearing on penalties, the court ordered Heinz to pay a penalty of $2.25 million, which is less than the $10 million the ACCC had sought.
“The Heinz Group is one of the largest food companies in the world. We will continue to advocate for stronger penalties to deter large companies from engaging in serious contraventions of Australia’s consumer laws, particularly now that Parliament has passed legislation substantially increasing the maximum penalties for breaches of the ACL,” ACCC Chair Rod Sims said.
“The ACCC wants to ensure that penalties for breaches of the consumer law are large enough to get the attention of the financial markets, boards and senior management."
The court has also ordered Heinz to establish a consumer law compliance program and to pay the ACCC’s costs.
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