The company’s portrayal of the McRib, lawyers say, was “deliberately crafted to resemble a rack of pork ribs,” even though the sandwich itself doesn’t contain any rib meat. Instead, the sandwich is largely comprised of lower-grade pork products.
An Illinois-based federal judge has rejected McDonald’s request to dismiss a class-action lawsuit accusing the fast-food company of deceiving consumers over the content of its popular McRib sandwich.
According to ABC News, the lawsuit was originally filed in December 2025. In court documents, attorneys for the class claim that McDonald’s engaged in “false representations, omissions and concealments” when marketing its McRib sandwiches.
The company’s portrayal of the McRib, lawyers say, was “deliberately crafted to resemble a rack of pork ribs,” even though the sandwich itself doesn’t contain any rib meat. Instead, the sandwich is largely comprised of lower-grade pork products.
“Put simply,” the lawsuit claims, “consumers have been materially misled en masse as a result of McDonald’s deceptive labeling and marketing into purchasing sandwiches that they would not otherwise have purchased, or would have paid less for, had they known the truth.”
McDonald’s has since pushed back on these allegations, calling the lawsuit “meritless” and claiming that it “distorts the facts.”
“We’ve always been transparent about our ingredients so guests can make the right choice for them,” McDonald’s told ABC News in a statement.
Reuters notes that, in her decision to reject McDonald’s request for a dismissal, U.S. District Judge April Perry said it was premature to accept the argument that “no reasonable consumer” would expect the McRib to contain actual rib meat.
Perry, who is based in Chicago, said that McDonald’s website describes the McRib as a product made from pork, and that reasonable consumers should not have to do research before buying a fast-food sandwich. She also highlighted the McRib’s shape as potential evidence of intent to defraud, though she emphasized that the class and its attorneys have yet to establish that the company intended to deceive its clientele.
“Plaintiffs’ proffered understanding of ‘McRib’ is not unreasonable or fanciful,” Perry wrote in her ruling.
Nevertheless, Perry later observed that McDonald’s employs non-specific naming patterns.
The McChicken, for instance, contains chicken—but the same isn’t true of all products. “Dinosaur nuggets do not contain dinosaur meat,” Perry wrote, “and the McFlurry does not come accompanied by a small snowstorm.”
McDonald’s, for its part, continues to insist that it has always been transparent about its ingredients. It also pushed back on allegations that the McRib is made from low-grade pork products that aren’t ordinarily sold for human consumption.
“Our fan-favorite McRib sandwich is made with 100 percent pork sourced from farmers and suppliers across the US,” McDonald’s told Reuters. “There are no hearts, tripe, or scalded stomach used in the McRib patty as falsely alleged in this lawsuit.”
Sources
A Lawsuit Says the McRib Is Lacking Something You Might Expect It to Have
Judge allows class action McRib lawsuit against McDonald’s to proceed
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