Freedline
Freedline v. O Organics LLC
Opinion
trial_court Opinion
1 2 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 3 NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 4 5 GARY FREEDLINE, Case No. 19-cv-01945-JD
6 Plaintiff,
ORDER RE MOTION TO DISMISS
v. 7 Re: Dkt. No. 18 8 O ORGANICS LLC et al., Defendants. 9
10 In this putative consumer class action, plaintiff Gary Freedline alleges that defendants O 11 Organics LLC and its parent company, Lucerne Foods, Inc. (together “O Organics”), misled 12 consumers about the alcohol and sugar content in their kombucha beverage products. Dkt. No. 1. 13 O Organics asks to dismiss the complaint under Rule 12(b)(6) and Rule 9(b). Dkt. No. 18. The 14 motion is granted and denied in part. 15 BACKGROUND 16 As alleged in the complaint, O Organics is a national manufacturer and distributor of 17 organic kombucha drinks. Dkt. No. 1 ¶ 6. Kombucha is made out of tea that is fermented by 18 bacteria and yeasts. These microorganisms metabolize sugars, acids and caffeine in the tea, and 19 convert them to carbon dioxide and alcohol. Id. ¶ 13. The drinks are often flavored with fruits 20 and herbs, see id. ¶…