Post Foods, LLC v. Superior Court of L. A. Cnty.

*644 *281 Petitioners Post Foods, LLC, General Mills, Inc., General Mills Sales, Inc., and Kellogg USA, Inc. petition for a writ of mandate directing the superior court to vacate its June 26, 2017 order denying their motion for summary judgment and issue an order granting the motion. We issued a stay pending this Court's resolution of the petition and an order to show cause why a writ of mandate should not issue.

Real party in interest Dr. Richard Sowinski's complaint alleges that Petitioners' breakfast cereals were required by California's Proposition 65 to display cancer and reproductive harm warnings because they contain acrylamide. Petitioners contend such warnings on cereals are preempted by federal law because they would pose an obstacle to federal policy objectives to increase Americans' consumption of whole grains. In support, Petitioners cite to numerous federal statutes establishing that policy, and Food and Drug Administration (FDA) letters to California regulators cautioning against Proposition 65 warnings on cereals because they could mislead consumers and cause them to avoid whole grains, resulting in health detriments. Because we agree that Dr. Sowinski's…