California tuna fish packers may have been skimping on the tuna, a settlement reached Friday alleged.
Chicken of the Sea International, StarKist Company and Bumble Bee Foods agreed to pay a $3.3 million in civil penalties, costs, and other relief after the District Attorney's consumer unit found the packagers weren't filling their cans with enough tuna.
The cans in question met the standard of fill requirements, but used more vegetable broth and other added flavors to meet the requirements, and not as much tuna, District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis said in a statement.
"Our Consumer Unit is focused on making sure San Diego consumers get what they pay for," Dumanis said. "Labels help consumers make selections, in this case our offices worked together to make sure that what is on the label is what's actually in the can."
The case was opened in 2010 following an investigation in 2010 by the California Department of Food and Agriculture.
The settlement with the three major Pittsburgh companies is not an admission of wrongdoing.
Part of the settlement requires the companies to provide $300,000 in canned tuna to food banks around California, a judge mandated Thursday.
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