Aldi has settled a class action lawsuit that accused it of selling Simply Nature “100% Pure Avocado Oil” that lab testing showed was cut with sunflower and safflower oil. The case, Frost v. Aldi Inc., was filed in September 2024 in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York and ended with a settlement in principle announced on September 29, 2025. The dollar amount and terms were not made public.1Bloomberg Law. Aldi Agrees to Settle Pure Avocado Oil Deception Class Lawsuit
What the Lawsuit Alleged
Plaintiff Maggie Frost brought the proposed class action on September 18, 2024 (Case No. 1:24-cv-07095), targeting Aldi’s 17-ounce bottle of Simply Nature avocado oil. The label listed “refined avocado oil” as the only ingredient.2ClassAction.org. Frost v. Aldi Inc. Complaint
According to the complaint, laboratory testing showed the product was adulterated with sunflower and safflower oil, contradicting the “100% Pure” claim on the front of the bottle.3Truthinadvertising.org. Simply Nature Avocado Oil Third-party testing also found that the oil’s fatty acid profile did not match the “fingerprint” of pure avocado oil.4Bloomberg Law. Aldi Hit With False-Ad Suit Over 100% Pure Avocado Oil Claims
Frost sued under New York consumer protection law, arguing the labeling was false advertising and that shoppers paid a premium for a product they believed was pure. The complaint pointed out that Aldi charged $1.20 more for the 17-ounce avocado oil than for a larger 25-ounce bottle of its Simply Nature grapeseed oil, evidence that purity itself was what buyers were paying extra for, especially those choosing avocado oil for health reasons.5Truthinadvertising.org. CATrends: Adulterated Avocado Oil6ClassAction.org. Aldi 100% Pure Avocado Oil Contains Other Undisclosed Oils, Class Action Lawsuit Claims
What Is Known About the Settlement
Aldi and Frost notified the court on September 29, 2025 that they had reached a settlement in principle. Judge Mary Kay Vyskocil then dismissed the case without costs and without prejudice.1Bloomberg Law. Aldi Agrees to Settle Pure Avocado Oil Deception Class Lawsuit
The payout figure has not been disclosed. Available reporting also does not clarify whether the deal resolves only Frost’s individual claims or extends to a broader class of Aldi customers. Because the dismissal is without prejudice, the case could technically be refiled if the settlement collapses, though that is unusual once terms have been agreed. Aldi did not issue a public statement about the allegations or the resolution.
If you bought this product and are looking for a claim form or refund process, none has been announced in the public record. Anyone eligible for money under a class settlement would ordinarily receive notice through the settlement administrator once (and if) the court approves final terms.
The Testing That Put Aldi’s Oil in the Crosshairs
The complaint relied on research from the University of California, Davis, which has been publishing on avocado oil quality since 2020. A 2020 study by researchers Selina Wang and Hilary Green, published in Food Control, analyzed 22 avocado oil samples and found that at least 82 percent were either oxidized before their expiration date or adulterated. Three bottles labeled “pure” or “extra virgin” turned out to contain nearly 100 percent soybean oil.7UC Davis. Study Finds 82 Percent of Avocado Oil Rancid or Mixed With Other Oils
A 2023 follow-up focused on private-label store brands, testing 36 products from 19 retailers in the U.S. and Canada. Only 31 percent were pure, and only 36 percent met their advertised quality.8UC Davis. 70% of Private Label Avocado Oil Rancid or Mixed With Other Oils Aldi’s Simply Nature brand was among those that failed, showing signs of adulteration with other vegetable oils.9ScienceDirect. Purity and Quality of Private Labelled Avocado Oil
Aldi Was Not the Only Retailer Sued
Frost’s lawsuit was one of at least eight class actions filed against avocado oil sellers starting in 2024, six of them in September and October alone. Defendants included Walmart (Great Value), Target (Good & Gather), Trader Joe’s, Sam’s Club, Stop & Shop, Sprouts Farmers Market, and Sovena USA (Olivari). An earlier suit against Kroger over its Private Selection brand was dismissed in June 2024.5Truthinadvertising.org. CATrends: Adulterated Avocado Oil
Plaintiffs tried to consolidate the pending suits into a single multidistrict litigation, but on February 6, 2025, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation denied that request. The panel found that each case involved a different defendant with distinct labeling, no conspiracy was alleged among them, and every responding defendant opposed transfer.10U.S. Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation. MDL-3133 Order Denying Transfer The cases continued separately in their original courts. Aldi’s was the first to reach a reported settlement.
Why “100% Pure” Isn’t Actually Defined
Part of what made these suits possible is that the FDA has never adopted “standards of identity” for avocado oil, meaning no binding federal rule defines what the product must contain to be sold under that name.7UC Davis. Study Finds 82 Percent of Avocado Oil Rancid or Mixed With Other Oils The FDA has acknowledged that high-value oils like avocado oil are common targets for economically motivated adulteration, but it has not issued specific rules.
In November 2024, the Codex Alimentarius Commission added avocado oil to its Standard for Named Vegetable Oils, setting international quality and purity criteria for the first time.11Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations. Codex Alimentarius Commission Adopts New Standards Codex standards are not directly enforceable in U.S. courts, but they give regulators and plaintiffs a benchmark to point to. Until the FDA sets its own rule, private class actions like Frost’s remain the main enforcement mechanism for what “pure” is supposed to mean on a bottle of avocado oil.