Class action claims Oreo , Chips Ahoy parent company perpetuates child labor , slavery
Snack food giant Mondelez International Inc . engages in practices that perpetuate child labor and child slavery while falsely claiming its products are “ sustainable ,” according to a child labor class action lawsuit filed Jan . 30 in California federal court .
Mondelez reportedly earned more than $ 31 billion in revenue in 2022 , and some of its most popular products include Oreos , Chips Ahoy , Clif Bars and Toblerone . However , the Mondelez class action lawsuit alleges the company profits by paying local cocoa farmers as little as $ 3 per day , causing them to resort to child labor and child slavery .
Plaintiff Megan Waggener Van Meter says Mondelez “ knows its practices perpetuate child labor and child slavery , yet it nonetheless slaps phony ‘ seals ’ on its products claiming its cocoa is ‘ 100 % sustainable ,’ ‘ certified ,’ or claiming that it ‘ supports ’ or ‘ helps ’ farmers when it knows the opposite is true .”
Van Meter also claims Mondelez ’ s supply chain has “ virtually no environmental standards in place ,” and that the chocolate industry has driven deforestation across the Ivory Coast .
Consumers are willing to pay a premium for sustainable and ethically sourced products , the child slavery class action lawsuit says . Van Meter points to a study showing 60 % of consumers would stop purchasing a product if they knew human trafficking or forced labor played
a role in its production .
Knowing that consumers are willing to pay more for “ sustainable ” products , Mondelez markets many of its products as “ sustainable ” despite the ubiquity of slave labor on the Ivory Coast , the child labor class action alleges . The company also allegedly affixes meaningless seals to its products to mislead consumers into thinking they are ethically sourced when Mondelez is unable to substantiate its claims , the lawsuit argues .
Van Meter alleges she was misled by Mondelez ’ s representations that its products are procured through fair labor and environmental standards and practices . Had she known that Mondelez ’ s supply chain relied on unsustainable practices including child slavery , she says she would not have purchased the company ’ s products . The child slavery class action lawsuit asserts claims for violations of California ’ s Consumers Legal Remedies Act , Unfair Competition Law and unjust enrichment .
Hearing loss may be the result of treatment with Tepezza
Tepezza is an infusion medication manufactured by Horizon Therapeutics that is used to treat eye bulging and double vision . The medication may also treat thyroid eye disease symptoms such as eye pain , eye redness and eye swelling . Thyroid eye disease is a relatively rare disease that occurs as a result of Graves ’ disease , an autoimmune disorder involving an overactive thyroid .
In the two studies used to approve Tepezza , hearing problems were reported in 10 % of patients . A 2021 study presented in March 2021 at the Endocrine Society ’ s annual meeting suggests that this rate could be much higher . The study , which evaluated 26 patients treated with Tepezza , found that 65 % of the patients suffered from hearing problems . Symptoms recorded by the study included :
• Hearing loss ( experienced by 23 % of patients )
• Tinnitus or ringing in the ears ( experienced by 27 % of patients )
• Ear plugging sensations ( 12 % of patients )
• Autophony or an unusually loud hearing of one ’ s own voice ( experienced by 29 % of patients )
According to the study , Tepezza hearing loss can take many forms . Some patients experienced sensorineural hearing loss , which is a result of damaged hair cells in the inner ear . Others experienced patulous Eustachian tube , a disorder in which a channel between the middle ear and the nose and throat area remains open constantly instead of opening only to regulate air pressure in the ear .
Unfortunately , hearing loss was permanent in some of these cases . After three months , some symptoms improved while others remained , even after stopping the drug .
In February 2022 , a post-marketing safety analysis from Horizon Therapeutics confirmed the risk of Tepezza hearing loss , though Horizon ’ s trials only found hearing-related side effects in 9.5 % of patients .
Due to the results of these studies , the FDA approved a label change for Tepezza in July 2023 . The new label includes a warning for “ hearing impairment including hearing loss , which in some cases may be permanent .”
Although the 2023 Tepezza label change helps warn patients and doctors