(Newser)
– Truth in advertising is important to most people, but especially to Robert Galinsky. UPI reports that the resident of Yonkers, NY, filed a class action lawsuit against King’s Hawaiian, a Hawaiian candy maker based in Torrance, California – leading to Galinsky’s complaint. In his suit, Galinsky says that although the location in California is noted on the back of the roll packaging, “Hilo, Hawaii” adorns the front, which led him to believe that the bread was made in the state of Aloha. Galinsky adds in his complaint that King’s Hawaiian has filed its own lawsuits against other manufacturers to prevent them from using the word “Hawaiian roles” in their marketing guarantees, making the company essentially its main target.
King’s Hawaiian “is the largest seller of Hawaiian rolls and has essentially invented this category of food,” says Galinsky in his suit. The company’s website explains that it was founded in the 1950s in Hilo by Hawaiian Robert Taira and named Robert’s Bakery. When it expanded and moved to King Street in Honolulu, it was renamed King’s Bakery. But “Robert was determined to spread his Aloha spirit across the continent,” the website notes, and so in 1977 the company moved to a new unit in Torrance and renamed itself King’s Hawaiian Bakery, which is its current name. Galinsky says the company knew that placing the prominent “Hilo” on the front of the package “would be [mislead] consumers, “supports its lawsuit, according to top actions. Hawaii News Now notes that this type of complaint about the use of Hawaii themed labeling has happened before, including with Kona Brewing and Hawaiian Host.