WASHINGTON A New Jersey man sued Denny’s Corp. Thursday in the first-ever, sodium-related lawsuit against a restaurant chain, according to officials at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, the consumer advocacy group that is supporting the action.
Attorneys for Nick DeBenedetto, 48, filed the pending class action suit in Superior Court of New Jersey in an attempt to get the 1,500-unit family-dining chain to disclose the amount of sodium in each of its food items and place a warning about high sodium levels in the food on its menu, the CSPI said.
Spartanburg, S.C.-based Denny’s said in a statement that the lawsuit is "frivolous and without merit."
"The company will fight it aggressively in court," Denny's said. "With hundreds of items on the menu, Denny's offers a wide variety of choices for consumers with different lifestyles, understanding that many [of them] have special dietary needs."
The chain further noted that it had launched a series of Better For You items in June that allowed guests to substitute certain foods with others that contain less sodium and fat.
The CSPI is notorious for pushing the restaurant industry to disclose nutritional content, remove trans fats and include more healthful options for consumers. In May, it released a study dissecting the sodium levels of numerous chain restaurant meals, saying certain dishes contained more than a full day’s worth of the recommended amount of salt.
According to court papers, the plaintiff is seeking damages under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, including “a refund of the purchase price of the meals at issue, which he would not have purchased if he had known the sodium content.”
The suit further states that Denny’s violated New Jersey laws by “its concealment, suppression or omission of the material fact that its food contains excessive amounts of sodium.”
“By concealing an important material fact about its products — namely, that these foods have disease-promoting levels of sodium — Denny’s is failing its responsibility to its customers and is in violation of the laws of New Jersey and several other states,” said Steve Gardner, CSPI’s litigation director.
Denny’s and the CSPI originally entered into negotiations in 2008 over the chain’s use of sodium, but failed to come to any agreement. In February, Denny’s said it would begin to reformulate menu items to include lower salt content, and by June, the new items were available systemwide. In addition, Denny’s said it eliminated higher-sodium items from its kids’ menu, replacing them with more healthful items such as fruits and vegetables.
DeBenedetto, who said he suffers from hypertension that is treated with medication, is a frequent Denny’s diner and has eaten at the chain’s restaurants for many years. One of his favorite foods, he noted, is the Moons Over My Hammy sandwich, which is composed of ham, eggs and cheese and contains 2,580 milligrams of sodium. The suggested daily intake of sodium is 2,300 milligrams for adults and 1,500 milligrams for seniors and children. Diets high in sodium have been linked to chronic illnesses as high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.
The CSPI has filed suit against several restaurant companies in recent years over the ingredient content in menu items. It sued KFC and Burger King for their use of partially hydrogenated oil, or trans fat, in food preparation. KFC said the CSPI dropped the suit in 2006 after the chain switched to zero trans-fat cooking oil. A spokeswoman for Burger King said its suit “was dismissed because the CSPI had not met the basic legal requirement of alleging someone was actually harmed by trans fats.” Burger King stopped using trans-fat oil in its menu items in 2008.
The National Restaurant Association claimed that the lawsuit was without merit, it said Thursday.
"Frivolous lawsuits won't help Americans make smart food choices and live healthy lifestyles," Beth Johnson, the NRA's vice-president of public affairs, said. "Collaboration is more productive, which is why restaurant companies are working with manufacturers, suppliers and health organizations to reduce sodium."
Contact Elissa Elan at [email protected].