Organic Consumers Ass'n v. Hain Celestial Grp., Inc.

285 F. Supp. 3d 100
CourtCourt of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit
DecidedJanuary 3, 2018
DocketCase No. 1:16–cv–00925 (TNM)
StatusPublished
Cited by5 cases

This text of 285 F. Supp. 3d 100 (Organic Consumers Ass'n v. Hain Celestial Grp., Inc.) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Organic Consumers Ass'n v. Hain Celestial Grp., Inc., 285 F. Supp. 3d 100 (D.C. Cir. 2018).

Opinion

TREVOR N. MCFADDEN, United States District Judge

The Organic Consumers Association ("Plaintiff") brings this action under the District of Columbia Consumer Protection Procedures Act ("CPPA"), seeking to prevent Defendant Hain Celestial Group, Inc. ("Hain Celestial") from labeling its "Earth's Best" infant and toddler formula products as "organic," at least when those products are in the District of Columbia. The complaint's only count alleges that the products contain synthetic ingredients that are not permitted under the federal Organic Food Production Act of 1990 ("OFPA"), and thus the "organic" label is a misrepresentation that violates the CPPA. Hain Celestial moves to dismiss, contending, inter alia , that private enforcement of organic labeling via state law is preempted by the OFPA. For the reasons that follow, I conclude that Plaintiff's claim is federally preempted, and grant the motion to dismiss.

I. BACKGROUND

Plaintiff filed a single-count complaint in D.C. Superior Court, alleging that Hain Celestial's infant and toddler formulas under the "Earth's Best" brand (the "Challenged Products") contain "[a]t least 29 ingredients" (the "Challenged Ingredients") not permitted under the OFPA. Compl. 4. According to Plaintiff, these ingredients are "nonagricultural substances," some of which pose health risks *102to the public, and all of which are illegal in "organic" infant formula because they are not permitted under the OFPA and its regulations. Compl. 4, 12-23. Plaintiff seeks a declaration that Defendant's conduct in marketing the Challenged Products violates the CPPA, an order enjoining the conduct and requiring "corrective advertising and revised labeling," costs and disbursements (including attorneys' fees), and punitive damages. Compl. 27-28.

Hain Celestial removed to federal court on the basis of diversity and federal question jurisdiction, and Plaintiff did not contest the removal. Hain Celestial moves to dismiss the complaint in its entirety.1

I. LEGAL STANDARDS

"To survive a motion to dismiss, a complaint must contain sufficient factual matter, accepted as true, to 'state a claim to relief that is plausible on its face.' " Ashcroft v. Iqbal , 556 U.S. 662, 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937, 173 L.Ed.2d 868 (2009) (quoting Bell Atl. Corp. v. Twombly, 550 U.S. 544, 570, 127 S.Ct. 1955, 167 L.Ed.2d 929 (2007) ). "A claim crosses from conceivable to plausible when it contains factual allegations that, if proved, would 'allow the court to draw the reasonable inference that the defendant is liable for the misconduct alleged.' " Banneker Ventures, LLC v. Graham , 798 F.3d 1119, 1129 (D.C. Cir. 2015) (alteration omitted) (quoting Iqbal , 556 U.S. at 678, 129 S.Ct. 1937 ). In undertaking this inquiry, the court will "accept all the well-pleaded factual allegations of the complaint as true and draw all reasonable inferences from those allegations in the plaintiff's favor." Id. However, we do not assume the truth of legal conclusions. Id.

II. ANALYSIS

A. Standing

Because jurisdiction is a threshold question, I begin by considering whether Plaintiff has standing.2 Defendant contends that Plaintiff has failed to adequately plead a concrete "injury-in-fact," part of the " 'irreducible constitutional minimum' of Article III standing. Shaw v. Marriott Int'l, Inc. , 605 F.3d 1039, 1042 (D.C. Cir. 2010) (quoting Lujan v. Defenders of Wildlife , 504 U.S. 555, 560-61, 112 S.Ct. 2130, 119 L.Ed.2d 351 (1992) ); Def.'s Mot. Dismiss 10-15. But the complaint alleges, inter alia , that because it exists to promote the interests of organic consumers, Plaintiff funds programs aimed at informing organic consumers about the dangers of synthetic and genetically-modified ingredients, appealing directly to manufacturers like Hain Celestial, and advocating for stricter organic standards with government actors. Compl. 8, ¶¶ 30-31 (citing Compl. Ex. 12). The Challenged Products embody what Plaintiff opposes, creating a "need to 'counteract' the [Defendant's] assertedly illegal practices,"

*103Fair Employment Council of Greater Washington, Inc. v. BMC Mktg. Corp. , 28 F.3d 1268, 1276 (D.C. Cir. 1994) (quoting Havens Realty Corp. v. Coleman , 455 U.S. 363, 379, 102 S.Ct. 1114, 71 L.Ed.2d 214 (1982) ), and requiring still more programmatic efforts. Compl. Ex. 12 (educational and political efforts, naming Earth's Best infant formula a "worst offender"); Compl. 8 ("efforts to persuade ... Earth's Best").

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285 F. Supp. 3d 100, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/organic-consumers-assn-v-hain-celestial-grp-inc-cadc-2018.