Hershey's Faces Lawsuit Over Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins Design and More

A series of false advertising lawsuits have rocked corporate America. Between a lawsuit against Taco Bell over its Mexican Pizza not including enough ingredients or Panera Bread for not properly disclosing the amount of caffeine in its Charged Lemonade, consumers everywhere are concerned that they're not getting what they paid for.

The Hershey Company, sometimes known as just "Hershey's," faces a false advertising lawsuit over its Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins, which typically arrive on shelves before Halloween. Here's what you need to know about this lawsuit and what the plaintiff seeks.

On Dec. 29, 2023, WFLA reported that Florida resident Cynthia Kelly has filed a class action lawsuit against The Hershey Company, accusing the company of using "false and deceptive advertising" in regard to various Reese's products.

H.B. Reese's sons sold the Reese's Peanut Butter Cups to the Hershey Company in 1963, per the Hersheyland website.

The official complaint, filed on Dec. 28, 2023, states that Kelly is suing Hershey's "on behalf of herself and all other similarly situated individuals who purchased a Reese's Peanut Butter product based on false and deceptive advertising."

Specifically, Kelly claims that when she picked up a bag of Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins for $4.49 at a local Aldi and unwrapped the candy, it did not possess the jack o'lantern design as portrayed on the outer packaging.

Court documents allege that Hershey's products violated Florida's Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act and included several Reese's products with artistic designs, not just the Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins. These products include "Reese's Peanut Butter Bats" and "Reese's Peanut Butter footballs," which the suit claims are also missing the decorative designs.

The lawsuit also links to "multiple YouTube reviews from people complaining about being duped by the packaging," per WFLA.

Kelly says she "would not have purchased the Reese's Peanut Butter Pumpkins product if she knew that it did not have the detailed carvings of the mouth and/or eyes as pictured on the product label," according to court documents.

Further, court documents claim that Hershey's packaging hasn't always been "deceptive and misleading" but that Hershey changed the packaging to boost revenue.

The lawsuit is currently asking for $5 million, according to People. Court documents allege that plaintiffs have suffered damages "amounting to, at minimum, the price they paid for the products."

The Hershey Company has not issued a comment or statement on the lawsuit.