A lawsuit brought by a California man who claimed the Winston-Salem based maker of Texas Pete hot sauce misled customers has been dismissed.
According to a news release from TW Garner Food Co., a motion was filed on September 28 by Phillip White asking the court to dismiss his actions. A federal judge in California granted the dismissal on Thursday.
“We at TW Garner Food Co. are delighted with this result,” said Ann Garner Riddle, the company’s President and CEO. “Since the lawsuit was filed, we have remained steadfast in our position that our product labels and trademark are truthful and not misleading in any respect, and that the lawsuit had no merit.”
TW Garner Food Co. has been producing Texas Pete hot sauce and other popular food products for nearly 100 years.
White’s suit claimed “he was confused by TW Garner Food Co.’s use of its trademark Texas Pete® on hot sauce products, which, White said, caused him to believe that the products were made in Texas when, in fact, they are made in North Carolina.”
According to White, he would have paid less for a hot sauce made in North Carolina than the approximately $3.00 that he paid for a hot sauce he believed was made in Texas.
The company denied the claims and allegations on numerous grounds, including that the back label of Texas Pete bottles identify North Carolina as the geographic source of the products.
A judge ruled earlier this year that the suit could move forward after denying the TW Garner Food Co.’s motion to dismiss the case, and a hearing on the suit had been scheduled for December.
With the dismissal, both sides agreed to handle their own legal fees.
