SUGAR HIGHS, SUGAR LOWS

Hershey Wins Lawsuit Claiming Halloween Candy Isn’t Spooky Enough

After all, who says boo! to chocolate?

Hershey has scored a sweet win in a class-action lawsuit claiming the wrappers on its pumpkin-shaped Reese’s tricked customers buying the treat. The suit had claimed that Hershey had used misleading advertising, arguing that its Reese’s Peanut Butter Pumpkins packaging depicting a jack-o-lantern face on the treat was inaccurate—because the chocolates themselves didn’t feature the carved eyes or mouth shown there. (In other words, they looked more poopy than spooky.) It also took issue with the “artistic depictions” featured on a number of other other holiday-themed candies. The plaintiffs were unsuccessful, however, because they couldn’t prove the faceless chocolates caused them “economic injury,” U.S. District Judge Melissa Damian ruled. She added that the confectioneries weren’t “so flawed as to render them worthless.” The complaint will be amended and refiled, however, according to an attorney representing the consumers, Anthony Russo. “We believe that companies should not be awarded with sales when they falsely represent the main characteristic of the product and only have to pay damages if it can be shown that the consumers paid a premium,” he told CBS News.