A class action filed in October 2025 claims that Iris USA’s airtight pet food containers are designed in a way that lets curious pets, mostly cats, nudge open the lid, climb inside, and suffocate when the lid falls shut and re-latches on its own. The Iris USA pet food container lawsuit was prompted by the death of a three-pound kitten named Ace in July 2025, and it seeks a recall and damages on behalf of every U.S. purchaser of the containers.1ClassAction.org. Mallozzi v. Iris USA, Inc., Complaint
What the Lawsuit Says Is Wrong With the Containers
The complaint centers on the latch. Iris USA markets its airtight containers with a downward-swinging latch as a safety feature meant to “Keep Paws Out.” The lawsuit alleges the mechanism does the opposite: a cat can lift or nudge the latch open, climb inside, and then be trapped when the hinged lid rebounds and drops shut. Because the latch is mounted on the lid itself, it swings down and locks automatically, sealing the animal inside an airtight space.2ClassAction.org. Iris USA Lawsuit Claims Dangerously Defective Pet Food Containers Pose Suffocation Risk
The containers include a small foam strip meant to keep the lid from fully latching on its own. The complaint calls this measure “largely ineffective,” alleging the foam wears out after limited use, after which the lid can slam shut and lock without resistance. The complaint describes the product as a “death trap” that is “unreasonably dangerous to pets.”3Legal News Line. Lawsuit: Cats Are Dying in Their Food Containers
The lawsuit also accuses Iris USA of knowing about the risk. It alleges the company has seen pet death and injury reports on internet forums and on its own website, yet continues to market the containers as “safer” for pets without disclosing the suffocation risk, and “could easily disclose the Defect on its product pages, on the container itself, the packaging, etc., but chooses not to.”2ClassAction.org. Iris USA Lawsuit Claims Dangerously Defective Pet Food Containers Pose Suffocation Risk
The Pet Deaths Behind the Case
Named plaintiff Valentina Mallozzi, of Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, bought an Iris airtight container on Amazon earlier in 2025. In July, her kitten Ace opened the “secure locking latch,” climbed inside, and became trapped when the lid fell shut with significant force and the downward-facing latch swung closed. Because the container is airtight, Ace suffocated within minutes.3Legal News Line. Lawsuit: Cats Are Dying in Their Food Containers4Top Class Actions. Kitten’s Death Sparks Class Action Lawsuit Over Unsafe Iris USA Pet Food Containers Sold on Amazon
Ace is not the only pet named in the complaint. A cat named Peach, owned by Cari Corr, opened an Iris USA dog food storage container on her own, became trapped, and suffocated. That incident was documented in the “Prevent Pet Suffocation” Facebook group and is cited in the complaint as further evidence of the pattern.5The Philadelphia Inquirer. Iris USA Food Storage Container Cat Pet Suffocation Lawsuit
Which Iris Containers Are Covered
The lawsuit covers every size and color of the Iris Airtight Pet Food Container line that uses the airtight locking mechanism. The containers are sold under the WeatherPro brand in capacities from roughly 12 quarts to 69 quarts, with prices on Iris’s own website running from about $17 to $71.6Iris USA. Airtight Pet Food Containers They are also sold through retailers including Amazon and PetSmart, where a 30-pound capacity model is listed at $19.99.7PetSmart. Iris Airtight Pet Food Container – Dog and Cat Food Storage Bin – Treat Box With Scoop
Two versions exist. The Amazon version, priced at roughly $17 to $30, has its latch mounted on the lid. A version sold through the Container Store at $30 to $36 has the latch on the container body instead of the lid.8Center for Pet Safety. Pet Food Container Evaluation to Assess Pet Suffocation Risk As of the available research, Iris USA has not issued a public statement about the lawsuit, announced a redesign, or initiated a voluntary recall.
What Independent Testing Found
The complaint leans on a March 10, 2025, evaluation by the Center for Pet Safety (CPS), a nonprofit that partnered with Prevent Pet Suffocation on the study. CPS tested how easily a pet could open the lid, whether the lid would rebound and re-latch, and whether external force (such as a pet jumping in) could cause the lid to close.8Center for Pet Safety. Pet Food Container Evaluation to Assess Pet Suffocation Risk
CPS found that the lid-mounted-latch version re-latched when forcefully shut or when it rebounded, and concluded this design “significantly increases the risk of pet suffocation.” The body-mounted version did not re-latch in testing, but CPS still flagged it as a suffocation risk because the lid can fall closed on its own while a pet is inside.8Center for Pet Safety. Pet Food Container Evaluation to Assess Pet Suffocation Risk CPS advised against any pet food or litter container with a latch on the lid and identified hinged lids in general as “a primary risk for suffocation,” recommending screw-on lid containers such as the Gamma2 Vittles Vault as a safer alternative.9Center for Pet Safety. Preventing Pet Suffocation: Pet Food Container Evaluation
The scale of the broader problem is grim. Prevent Pet Suffocation, a 501(c)(3) that tracks these incidents, reports that in 86% of the pet food container entrapments it has logged, the pet died, and most of the victims were cats. Deaths occurred in both latched and unlatched containers, meaning a closed lid alone can be enough. Cat behavior expert Ingrid King, cited in the CPS report, noted that a cat can suffocate in a sealed container in as few as three to five minutes.9Center for Pet Safety. Preventing Pet Suffocation: Pet Food Container Evaluation No federal rule currently requires manufacturers to warn consumers about pet suffocation risks on food or litter storage containers.
Who Is Covered and What the Lawsuit Seeks
The case, Mallozzi v. Iris USA, Inc. (Case No. 2:25-cv-06035), was filed on October 22, 2025, in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. It proposes a nationwide class of all U.S. purchasers of Iris Airtight Pet Food Containers, with a Pennsylvania subclass.1ClassAction.org. Mallozzi v. Iris USA, Inc., Complaint The claims include strict products liability for design defect and failure to warn, negligent design, negligent failure to warn, common law fraud, negligent misrepresentation, breach of implied warranty of merchantability, and violations of the Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law.
The suit asks for damages (including exemplary damages), restitution, and attorneys’ fees. It also seeks injunctive relief that would force Iris USA to notify class members of the alleged defect and recall the containers.1ClassAction.org. Mallozzi v. Iris USA, Inc., Complaint Mallozzi is represented by Steven A. Schwartz and Alex M. Kashurba of Chimicles Schwartz Kriner & Donaldson-Smith LLP.4Top Class Actions. Kitten’s Death Sparks Class Action Lawsuit Over Unsafe Iris USA Pet Food Containers Sold on Amazon
If You Own One of These Containers
No recall has been announced. If you own an Iris airtight pet food container, the independent testing cited in the lawsuit points to the lid-mounted-latch model as the higher-risk version, but CPS flagged both versions as a suffocation risk and advises against hinged-lid pet food containers generally, recommending screw-on lid designs instead.9Center for Pet Safety. Preventing Pet Suffocation: Pet Food Container Evaluation Keep your proof of purchase; if the class is certified, buyers of any size or color in the airtight line are covered by the proposed class definition.