Bruce from Finding Nemo

Things We Saw Today: Lawsuit Alleges Subway “Tuna” Is Not Actually Tuna

A "mixture of various concoctions?" Yum.

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Mmmm, who doesn’t love a tasty sandwich made of “a mixture of various concoctions”? That’s what a lawsuit filed against the Subway restaurant chain in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California alleges is in the substance that Subway bills as “tuna.” According to the Washington Post, the plaintiffs allege that they have tested the stuff Subway’s selling as Tuna and claim it’s anything but.

The suit claims, as noted above, that the samples the plaintiff collected from Subway stores across California were found in a lab to be “a mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by defendants to imitate the appearance of tuna,” according to the complaint. The suit does not reveal what these “substances” are but … ew.

Now, I’ve never personally tasted the “tuna” at Subway, because as much as I’ll enjoy a spicy Italian once in a while (with extra banana peppers, please), the fish … paste ….stuff sitting in the ingredient tubs has never looked appetizing to me. And since I enjoy living, I just never took a chance with room temperature beige fish sludge fish. I’m just weird that way though.

Who’s suing, and why? Well, the named plaintiffs are Karen Dhanowa and Nilima Amin of Alameda County, California, who are suing Subway for “fraud, intentional misrepresentation, unjust enrichment, and other claims under federal and state laws,” according to the Post. The plaintiffs claimed they “were tricked into buying food items that wholly lacked the ingredients they reasonably thought they were purchasing.”

Again, why sue? Well, the attorneys are hoping to get this certified as a class action suit, which means potentially very big money … for the lawyers, and some money for everyone in the suit—if they opt-in. Sure it’s good to make Subway label their stuff, but this may also just be a cash grab.

Kind of oppor-tuna-isitic if you ask me.

(via The Washington Post, image: Disney)

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Jessica Mason
Jessica Mason (she/her) is a writer based in Portland, Oregon with a focus on fandom, queer representation, and amazing women in film and television. She's a trained lawyer and opera singer as well as a mom and author.