MINNEAPOLIS, Oct. 27, 2014 /PRNewswire-HISPANIC PR WIRE/ — If you purchased any Pure Via® Consumer Products, you could receive compensation from a class action settlement.

A settlement has been reached in a class action lawsuit against Merisant Company and Whole Earth Sweetener Company LLC (collectively, “Merisant”), the manufacturers of Pure Via® Consumer Products, including all Pure Via low calorie sweetener products. The lawsuit claims that Merisant mislabeled its Pure Via Consumer Products by describing the products and their ingredients as “natural.” Merisant denies the allegations in the lawsuit, asserts it has not violated any laws, and says that its description of various Pure Via products and ingredients as “natural” is accurate. To avoid further litigation, the Parties have reached a class action settlement, which was preliminarily approved by the United States District Court for the Central District of California on October 6, 2014.

Under the terms of the Settlement, you may be entitled to compensation if you are a member of the Settlement Class, meaning that you purchased any of the Pure Via Consumer Products in the U.S. from January 1, 2008, through October 6, 2014, for individual or household use. Excluded from the Class are Merisant and its board members, officers, and attorneys; governmental entities; the Court presiding over the Settlement; and those persons who timely and validly request exclusion from the Settlement Class.

What Does The Settlement Provide? Settlement Class Members may submit a properly completed Claim Form and be eligible to receive a cash refund of up to $30. Merisant has also agreed to make certain changes to Pure Via product labels and modify the www.purevia.com website to further explain the products and their ingredients.

How Do You Submit A Claim? To qualify for payment, you must submit a Claim Form by February 10, 2015. Claim Forms can be obtained and returned by mail to: Pure Via Settlement Administrator, c/o Dahl Administration, P.O. Box 3614, Minneapolis, MN 55403-0614, or online at www.PureViaSweetenerSettlement.com. Claim Forms can also be obtained by calling 1-888-805-9126.

What Are Your Other Options? If you don’t want to be legally bound by the Settlement, you must exclude yourself (“opt-out”) by January 2, 2015. The detailed notice available at www.PureViaSweetenerSettlement.com or by calling 1-888-805-9126 explains how to exclude yourself from the Settlement. If you exclude yourself, you will not be entitled to any compensation and you cannot object to the Settlement. You also will not be bound by the Settlement and may be able to sue (or continue to sue) Merisant or others involved in the sale of Pure Via Consumer Products regarding the claims in this lawsuit.

If you are a Class Member, you may object to any part of the Settlement you don’t agree with, and the Court will consider your views. Your objection must be timely, in writing and must provide evidence of your membership in the Class. Procedures for submitting objections are set out in the detailed notice available at www.PureViaSweetenerSettlement.com or by calling 1-888-805-9126.

The Court will hold a Final Fairness Hearing at 9:00 a.m. on February 2, 2015 in Los Angeles, California. At this Hearing, the Court will consider whether the Settlement is fair, reasonable, and adequate and whether to approve the Class Representative’s Incentive Award up to $4,000 and attorneys’ fees and expenses of up to $495,000. You may attend the hearing, and you may hire your own lawyer, but you are not required to do either. The Court will consider timely written objections and may listen to people who have made a prior written request to speak at the Hearing. After the Hearing, the Court will decide whether to approve the Settlement.

What To Do If You Have Questions. Information contained in this Press Release is just a summary. Detailed notice, as well as the Settlement Agreement and other documents filed in this lawsuit, can be found online at www.PureViaSweetenerSettlement.com. For more information, you may call the Pure Via Settlement Administrator at 1-888-805-9126, write to P.O. Box 3614, Minneapolis, MN 55403-0614 or email [email protected].

QUESTIONS?  CALL 1-888-805-9126 or VISIT www.PureViaSweetenerSettlement.com.

MEDIA:  Jeff Dahl, 952-562-3601