--- title: "Lawsuit Claims That Subway “Tuna” Contains Extremely Weird DNA" description: "An updated lawsuit claims that a DNA analysis of the sandwich chain Subway's putative tuna shows that the substance contains anything but." date: "2021-11-11" modified: "2021-11-11" authors: - name: "Jon Christian" job_title: "Executive Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/jonc" url: "https://futurism.com/lawsuit-subway-tuna-dna" categories: - "Science & Energy" tags: - "dna" - "genetics" - "sandwiches" - "subway" --- # Lawsuit Claims That Subway “Tuna” Contains Extremely Weird DNA ![An updated lawsuit claims that a DNA analysis of the sandwich chain Subway's putative tuna shows that the substance contains anything but.]() *29 January 2021, Berlin: ILLUSTRATION - A "Tuna Sandwich" from the fast food chain "Subway" lies on a table. (posed scene) Photo: Jörg Carstensen/dpa (Photo by Jörg Carstensen/picture alliance via Getty Images) \Image: Getty Images\* Remember when a [lawsuit claimed that DNA testing]() had failed to find any actual tuna in what the sandwich chain Subway was selling as tuna salad, prompting a [furious rebuttal]() from the company's CEO? Well, now the suit is back — and this time, [the *Washington Post* reports](), the plaintiffs are making ominous new claims about what genetic material the alleged tuna really *does* contain. Originally, the suit had characterized the putative fish material as a "mixture of various concoctions that do not constitute tuna, yet have been blended together by defendants to imitate the appearance of tuna." Now, *WaPo* reports that in an amended suit, they're going into more methodological detail, saying that they collected tuna samples from 20 Subway locations around Southern California and sent them to the Barber Lab at UCLA's Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology. The results of those tests, according to the suit, failed to inspire confidence. Only one of the 20 samples revealed any tuna DNA at all, and all 20 appeared to contain chicken DNA, 11 included pork, and seven more indicated the presence of beef. As *WaPo* points out, that wouldn't just be vaguely disgusting — it would mean that countless customers were inadvertently running afoul of dietary restrictions ranging from religious guidelines to pescatarianism, which would represent an immense ethical snafu by Subway. It's worth noting, though, that Subway is still strenuously objecting to the claims. "The plaintiffs’ latest attempt to state a claim against Subway is just as meritless as their prior attempts," Mark Goodman, an attorney representing Subway, said in an email statement to *WaPo*. "These claims are false and will be proven to be completely meritless if the case gets past the pleading stage." Goodman also called the claims in the suit "fatally vague" and "based on flawed testing and misstate the contents of Subway tuna sandwiches, salads and wraps." A Subway spokesperson also told *WaPo* that the sandwiches do indeed contain "high-quality, wild-caught, 100 percent tuna." "The fact remains that Subway tuna is real and strictly regulated by the FDA in the US, and other government entities around the world," the spokesperson added. **Read more:** [The Subway tuna lawsuit is back, alleging that samples contain chicken, pork and cattle DNA]() \[*The Washington Post*\] **More on Subway:** [*Subway to Start Selling Meatless Meatball Marinara Subs*]() ## Author I'm responsible for editing, assigning, and scouting at Futurism, as well as occasionally writing for the site. That work involves keeping an eye on a wide range of narratives and issues, but over the past few years I've become increasingly interested in how AI is shaping the future of media, the web, and information itself. My day-to-day often involves collaborating on reporting and commentary projects bylined by my colleagues, but I try to find time to do my own reporting as well; stories I've broken for Futurism have been cited by publications including the New York Times, the Washington Post, the New Yorker, Wired, Ars Technica, New York Magazine, the Columbia Journalism Review, Bloomberg, and more. I grew up in Southern Vermont and attended Vanderbilt University. Prior to Futurism, I contributed to outlets including the Boston Globe, Vice, Wired, Slate, the Atlantic, the Outline, Ars Technica and more, and did stints in farming and food service. I currently live in Brooklyn, New York, and in my free time I enjoy pinball, word games, cycling, running, and music production. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()