Beech-Nut Says Baby Food Heavy Metal Suits Properly Dismissed

Beech-Nut Nutrition Co. urged a federal appeals court to uphold the dismissal of consumer deception suits over heavy metals in baby foods, saying the Food and Drug Administration—not a court—is the proper body to resolve the issues in the litigation.

Parents allege they overpaid because Beech-Nut failed to disclose the presence of lead, arsenic, and other heavy metals in various products. They say their proposed class suits are typical false advertising cases that courts can resolve, and argued that a district court was wrong to dismiss the suits because of FDA activity.

The “gravamen of plaintiffs’ claims is that Beech-Nut ...