Terms of Use

Effective Date September 3, 2008

PLEASE CAREFULLY READ THESE TERMS AND CONDITIONS OF USE (“TERMS“) BEFORE USING THIS WEB SITE, AS USE OF THE WEB SITE IS CONDITIONAL UPON ACCEPTANCE OF THESE TERMS, WHICH AFFECT YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS AND OBLIGATIONS. DO NOT USE THIS WEB SITE IF YOU DO NOT AGREE AND ACCEPT THESE TERMS.

Ventura Foods, LLC (“Ventura Foods,” “we,” or “us“) owns and operates this web site, including other interactive features that are accessible or downloadable though this site (individually, “Site” and collectively, the “Sites“). These Terms set forth the terms and conditions governing your use of the Site. By accessing or using this Site, you accept and agree to be legally bound by these Terms as they may be amended or supplemented from time to time.

In some instances, these Terms and a separate agreement setting forth additional conditions may apply to a service or product offered via the Site (“Additional Terms“). To the extent there is a conflict between these Terms and any Additional Terms, the Additional Terms will control unless the Additional Terms expressly state otherwise. Please also review the Site’s Privacy Policy.

Updates to the Terms.

We may make changes to the Terms from time to time in our sole discretion, by updating and posting the revised Terms on this Site, and specifying the effective date of the new version of the Terms. Your use of the Site following the posting of a new version of the Terms constitutes your acceptance of any such changes. Accordingly, when you visit this Site you should periodically check to see if a new version of the Terms has been posted.

Materials Ownership.

This Site may contain a variety of materials, including copyrighted material, such as information, articles, opinions, directories, guides, graphics, photographs, illustrations, images, video and audio clips, advertising and promotional materials, data, software, compilations, designs, graphical interface, and overall “look and feel, trademarks, logos, trade names, service marks, and trade identities, whether registered or unregistered (collectively, all of the foregoing are referred to as “Materials.“). This Site (including past, present and future versions) and its Materials are owned by Ventura Foods or its licensors. All right, title, and interest in and to the Materials available via the Site is the property of Ventura Foods or its licensors, and is protected by U.S. and international copyright, trademark, patent, and/or other proprietary rights and laws. Except to the minimum extent otherwise expressly permitted under applicable law or these Terms, no copying or other exploitation of Materials from the Site is permitted without the express prior written permission of Ventura Foods or the applicable owner. This applies to copyrighted materials regardless of whether or not a copyright notice appears on such Materials, and applies to trademarks, whether registered or unregistered, and regardless of whether or not a trademark notice appears on such Materials.

While we strive to keep the Materials that we post on the Site accurate, complete, and current, we cannot and do not guarantee, represent or warrant that any of the Materials on this Site are accurate, complete, timely or applicable to you, nor do we have any obligation or undertaking to update the Site.

License.

Ventura Foods grant you a nonexclusive, nontransferable, revocable, limited license to view, download, copy, and print Materials retrieved from the Site for your personal, non-commercial use, provided that you may not remove or obscure any copyright, trademark or other proprietary rights notice displayed on or in conjunction with the Materials. Except to the minimum extent otherwise expressly permitted under applicable law, you may not use any Materials available via the Site in any other manner or for any other purpose without the prior express written permission of Ventura Foods or its licensor, as applicable. You acknowledge that you do not acquire any ownership rights in any Materials by virtue of downloading, printing, modifying or using Materials from the Site. You may own the medium on which the Materials is recorded or printed, but we or our licensor retain all right, title, and interest in and to such Materials, and all intellectual property rights therein. All rights not expressly granted in these Terms are expressly reserved to Ventura Foods or its licensors. In some instances, certain Materials that you download from the Site is subject to a separate license agreement or other specific terms and conditions which will be provided at the time you download or install the Materials. In those situations, such applicable terms and conditions will control in lieu of these Terms.

Account Registration.

Certain areas of the Site may ask you to provide information or ask you to set up an account. You may decide not to set up an account or provide information; however, if you decline to do so, you may be unable to view or access certain Materials or otherwise enjoy portions of the Site. You are responsible for updating your account information. We are entitled to rely on the last information provided by you. You will be responsible for all activities that occur under your account or password, and you agree you will not sell, transfer or assign your account or any account rights. You are responsible for maintaining the confidentiality of your password, and for restricting access to your devices that access the Internet, so that others may not utilize your information to access the Site. We may terminate your account or deny you access to the Site in our sole discretion without notice and without liability.

User Submissions.

We may provide users the opportunity to submit their recipes, information, materials, and other content (collectively “Submissions“).

Rights You Grant to Us. Whenever you send, post, transmit, distribute or otherwise make available (collectively “Submit“) a Submission to the Site or directly to Ventura Foods (including by e-mail) you: (1) grant to Ventura Foods an irrevocable worldwide, nonexclusive, perpetual, fully sub-licensable and assignable, royalty-free right and license to use, exploit, reproduce, modify, adapt, translate, incorporate in other works, and otherwise create derivative works from, publish, distribute, transmit, broadcast, perform, display, and otherwise exercise all rights in and to such Submission (including the right to use or not use your name, voice, likeness and other identifying information in connection therewith), via the Site or otherwise, in any form, media, or technology now known or later developed, without any compensation to you, and (2) consent to all relevant acts or omissions in relation to your moral rights in such Submission (if any) which may or might otherwise constitute a breach or infringement of those moral rights, and to the extent permitted by law waive all your moral rights in such Submission, even if such material is altered or changed in a manner not agreeable to you.

No Confidential Relationship. We will treat any Submission that you Submit to the Site or directly to Ventura Foods (whether solicited or unsolicited) as non-confidential and non-proprietary and we will not be liable for any use or disclosure. You acknowledge and agree that your relationship with Ventura Foods is not a confidential, fiduciary, or other type of special relationship, and that your decision to Submit to the Site or to Ventura Foods directly does not place Ventura Foods in a position that is any different from the position held by members of the general public with regard to your Submissions. None of your Submissions shall be subject to any obligation of confidence on the part of Ventura Foods, and Ventura Foods shall not be liable for any use or disclosure of any Submission that you provide.

Representations You Make to Us. You are solely responsible for all Submissions that you Submit to a User Forum or some other aspect of the Site or directly to Ventura Foods (including by e-mail, text message or otherwise). By doing so, you represent and warrant to Ventura Foods that each such Submission: (1) is not confidential and that you have all necessary permission to Submit such Submission; and (2) does not infringe upon, misappropriate or violate the rights of any third parties, including, without limitation, any intellectual property rights, rights of publicity or privacy, or any other proprietary rights.

No Obligation to Use. You agree and understand that we are not obligated to post or use your Submissions, and may alternatively choose to discard your Submissions without any obligation or liability whatsoever.

Site Use Policy

You agree that you shall at all times comply with all applicable local, state, national, and international laws, statutes, rules, regulations, ordinances and the like applicable to your use of the Site. In addition, you agree that you will not do any of the following while using the Site:

Security, Cracking & Hacking. Violate or attempt to violate the security of any portion of the Site, including but not limited to: (i) access or attempt to access Materials not intended for you; (ii) log into or attempt to log into a server or account which you are not authorized to access; (iii) attempt to probe, scan, or test the vulnerability of a system or network or to breach security or authentication measures without proper authorization; (iv) attempt to interfere with or disrupt the Site, or the servers or networks that provide the Site, including without limitation, via means of submitting a virus to the Site, overloading, “flooding”, “mailbombing” or “crashing” the Site; (v) restrict or inhibit any other user from accessing or using the Site, including, without limitation, by means of hacking or defacing any portion of the Site; or (vi) modify, adapt, translate, reverse engineer, decompile, or disassemble any portion of the Site.

Inappropriate Submissions. Submit to or on the Site, anything that is or may be: (i) harmful, threatening, abusive, harassing, degrading, hateful, or intimidating; (ii) defamatory, libelous, or disparaging of any person or entity; (iii) false, fraudulent, or tortious; (iv) obscene, indecent, pornographic, vulgar, profane, or sexually explicit; (v) intended to promote (or have the effect of promoting) violence, racial hatred, terrorism or illegal acts; (vi) infringing, or in violation or misappropriation of, any patent, trademark, trade identity right, trade secret, publicity right, privacy right, copyright or any other intellectual property or any other rights of any third party; (vii) in violation of any other rights of any person or entity; (viii) violative of any law or regulation; or (ix) otherwise objectionable, in Ventura Foods’ sole discretion.

Viruses; Malware. Submit any virus, worm, “Trojan Horse,” “Easter egg,” “time bomb,” spyware, or any other computer code, file, or program that may or is intended to damage, hijack or otherwise interfere with the operation of the Site or any hardware, software, or telecommunications equipment or with any third party’s uninterrupted use and enjoyment of the Site.

Spam. Submit any advertising, promotional materials, “junk mail,” “spam,” investment opportunities, or any other form of solicitation.

Collect Personal Information. Collect or harvest personally identifiable information about other users of the Site or harass other persons.

Impersonation. Impersonate any person or entity; falsely state or otherwise misrepresent your affiliation with any person or entity, including Ventura Foods; forge headers or otherwise manipulate identifiers in order to disguise the origin of any Submissions to us or through the Site; or expressly state or imply that we endorse any statement you make.

Data Mining, Scraping, Etc. Except for search engines presenting links to users searching for Ventura Foods and related Materials, use any robot, spider, site search/retrieval application, or other manual or automatic device or process to retrieve, index, “data mine,” scrape, or in any way reproduce or circumvent the navigational structure or presentation of the Site or its Materials, unless otherwise authorized by Ventura Foods in writing in advance.

Linking Policy.

When linking to this Site: (i) the link must not damage, dilute or tarnish the goodwill associated with any Ventura Foods name or entity; (2) the link must not create the false appearance that your web site is sponsored by, endorsed by, affiliated with, or associated with Ventura Foods; (3) the web site may not “frame” or alter this Site in any way; and (4) the linked web site may not be unlawful, abusive, indecent or obscene, promotes violence or illegal acts, is libelous, defamatory or is otherwise deemed inappropriate, as determined by us in our sole discretion; and (iv) the linked web site may not display our Materials, including any of our product logos, to create a link, without our prior written consent.

Linked Sites.

The Site may link to other web sites that we do not maintain or are not under our control (“Linked Sites“). Your interactions with such Linked Sites are solely between you and the third party operator of the Linked Site. This may include, but is not limited to, your participation in promotions, purchase of goods, use of software or other third party materials, reliance upon advertising claims, the payment for and delivery of goods or services, and any terms, conditions, warranties, or representations associated with such interactions. We are not responsible for, and we make no representations or warranties regarding the services, personal information practices, ownership, or legality of any such Linked Sites. Your use of the Linked Sites is subject to the terms of use and privacy policies established by such third parties, and we encourage you to review those documents before you use their services. Your access to and use of such Linked Web Sites is solely at your own risk, and you agree that we will not be responsible or liable for any loss or damage of any sort that you may suffer as the result of your dealings with such Linked Sites.

Sweepstakes, Contests and Promotions.

This Site may contain sweepstakes, contests or promotions, which may be governed by a separate set of rules and may also have eligibility requirements. You must read those rules to determine whether or not your participation, registration or entry will be valid and to determine all other applicable requirements.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES WITH RESPECT TO SITE.

THE SITE (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ALL MATERIALS, LINKS, MESSAGES, PRODUCTS, SERVICES, INSTRUCTIONS, DOWNLOADS AND OTHER CONTENT CONTAINED ON AND/OR OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITE OR OTHERWISE) IS PROVIDED ON AN “AS IS” AND “AS AVAILABLE” BASIS, “WITH ALL FAULTS” AND WITHOUT WARRANTIES OF ANY KIND, EITHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED. TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, VENTURA FOODS AND ITS AFFILIATES AND THEIR RESPECTIVE MEMBERS, OFFICERS, DIRECTORS, EMPLOYEES, AGENTS, AND OTHER REPRESENTATIVES (COLLECTIVELY THE “VENTURA FOODS PARTIES“) EXPRESSLY DISCLAIM ALL WARRANTIES, REPRESENTATIONS, AND UNDERTAKINGS OF ANY KIND, WHETHER EXPRESS OR IMPLIED, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, ANY WARRANTIES OF TITLE, MERCHANTABILITY, FITNESS FOR A PARTICULAR PURPOSE, AND NON-INFRINGEMENT.

WITHOUT LIMITING THE FOREGOING, THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SITE WILL BE AVAILABLE OR THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITE WILL BE TIMELY, UNINTERRUPTED, ERROR-FREE, OR SECURE, THAT DEFECTS OR ERRORS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THE SITE (OR THE COMPUTERS, NETWORK EQUIPMENT AND THIRD PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS THAT MAKE IT AVAILABLE) IS FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU ARE RESPONSIBLE FOR OBTAINING AND MAINTAINING ALL INTERNET CONNECTIONS, HARDWARE AND SOFTWARE NEEDED TO ACCESS AND USE THE SITE, AND FOR PAYING ALL RELATED CHARGES. YOU ASSUME TOTAL RESPONSIBILITY AND RISK FOR YOUR USE OF AND RELIANCE ON THE SITE. NO OPINION, ADVICE, OR STATEMENT OF ANY VENTURA FOODS PARTY, WHETHER MADE ON THE SITE OR OTHERWISE, SHALL CREATE ANY WARRANTY NOT EXPRESSLY STATED HEREIN.

FURTHER, THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES DO NOT WARRANT THAT YOUR ACTIVITIES OR USE OF THE SITE IS LAWFUL IN ANY PARTICULAR JURISDICTION AND, IN ANY EVENT, THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES SPECIFICALLY DISCLAIM SUCH WARRANTIES. YOU UNDERSTAND THAT BY USING ANY OF THE FEATURES OF THE SITE, YOU ACT AT YOUR OWN RISK, AND YOU REPRESENT AND WARRANT THAT YOUR ACTIVITIES ARE LAWFUL IN THE JURISDICTION WHERE YOU ACCESS OR USE THE SITE.

THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR YOUR USE OF THE SITE, INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, THE MATERIALS OR ERRORS CONTAINED ON THE SITE.

APPLICABLE LAW MAY NOT ALLOW THE EXCLUSION OF IMPLIED OR OTHER WARRANTIES, SO THE ABOVE EXCLUSIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU TO THE EXTENT SUCH JURISDICTION’S LAW APPLIES TO THIS AGREEMENT.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY.

TO THE FULLEST EXTENT PERMISSIBLE PURSUANT TO APPLICABLE LAW, IN NO EVENT SHALL THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL, ECONOMIC, EXEMPLARY OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH OR RELATING TO YOUR USE OF THIS SITE OR WITH THE DELAY OR INABILITY TO USE THIS SITE, OR FOR ANY INFORMATION, MATERIALS, PRODUCTS, INSTRUCTIONS AND/OR SERVICES OBTAINED THROUGH THIS SITE, OR OTHERWISE ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THIS SITE, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT, STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF DAMAGES.

THE VENTURA FOODS PARTIES ARE NOT RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY DAMAGE TO YOUR COMPUTER MODEM, CELL PHONE, MOBILE DEVICE, COMPUTER SOFTWARE, OR OTHER EQUIPMENT OR TECHNOLOGY INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, DAMAGE FROM ANY SECURITY BREACH OR FROM ANY VIRUS, BUGS, TAMPERING, FRAUD, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER LINE OR NETWORK FAILURE OR ANY OTHER TECHNICAL OR OTHER MALFUNCTION.

YOUR ACCESS TO AND USE OF THIS SITE, OUR PRODUCTS AND SERVICES IS AT YOUR RISK. IF YOU ARE DISSATISFIED WITH THE SITE OR ANY OF THE MATERIALS, YOUR SOLE AND EXCLUSIVE REMEDY IS TO DISCONTINUE ACCESSING AND USING THE SITE OR THE MATERIALS AND, WITH RESPECT TO PRODUCTS OR SERVICES, AT OUR DISCRETION, A FULL REFUND OF THE PURCHASE PRICE OR THE REPLACEMENT OF PRODUCTS OR RE-PERFORMANCE OF SERVICES.

YOU RECOGNIZE AND CONFIRM THAT IN THE EVENT YOU INCUR ANY DAMAGES, LOSSES OR INJURIES THAT ARISE OUT OF OUR ACTS OR OMISSIONS, THE DAMAGES, IF ANY, CAUSED TO YOU ARE NOT IRREPARABLE OR SUFFICIENT TO ENTITLE YOU TO AN INJUNCTION PREVENTING THE PROVISION OF ANY SITE OWNED OR CONTROLLED BY US OR OUR LICENSORS, OR ANY OTHER EQUITABLE REMEDY, AND YOU WILL HAVE NO RIGHTS TO ENJOIN OUR PROVISIONING OF THE SITE.

BY ACCESSING THIS SITE, YOU UNDERSTAND THAT YOU MAY BE WAIVING RIGHTS WITH RESPECT TO CLAIMS THAT ARE AT THIS TIME UNKNOWN OR UNSUSPECTED, AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH SUCH WAIVER, YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOU HAVE READ AND UNDERSTAND, AND HEREBY EXPRESSLY WAIVE, THE BENEFITS OF SECTION 1542 OF THE CIVIL CODE OF CALIFORNIA, AND ANY SIMILAR LAW OF ANY STATE OR TERRITORY, WHICH PROVIDES AS FOLLOWS: “A GENERAL RELEASE DOES NOT EXTEND TO CLAIMS WHICH THE CREDITOR DOES NOT KNOW OR SUSPECT TO EXIST IN HIS FAVOR AT THE TIME OF EXECUTING THE RELEASE, WHICH IF KNOWN BY HIM MUST HAVE MATERIALLY AFFECTED HIS SETTLEMENT WITH THE DEBTOR.”

Indemnification.

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold the Ventura Foods Parties, harmless from and against any and all claims, demands, damages, losses, investigations, liabilities, judgments, settlements, costs (including attorneys’ fees), or other expenses that directly or indirectly arise from or are otherwise directly or indirectly connected to: (a) your breach or alleged breach of these Terms; (b) your use of the Site or activities in connection with the Site; (c) your Submissions; (d) your violation of any law, rule or regulation; or (e) your negligence, fault or omissions. You will cooperate as fully required by the Ventura Foods in the defense of any claim. Ventura Foods reserves the right to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, and you will not in any event settle any claim without the prior written consent of a duly authorized employee of Ventura Foods.

Compliance.

You understand and agree that we will determine your compliance with these Terms in our sole discretion. Any violation of these Terms may be referred to law enforcement authorities.

Equal Opportunity Employer.

It is the policy of Ventura Foods, LLC to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and employees. The company does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, age (40 and over), medical condition, handicap, veteran status, marital status, or sexual orientation. The company also makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped or disabled employees, This policy applies to all areas of employment including recruitment, hiring, training, promotion, compensation, benefits, transfer, social and recreation programs.

Modification or Suspension of the Site.

We reserve the right, at any time and without notice to you, to modify, add, suspend, or discontinue, temporarily or permanently, the entire Site or any portion of the Site, in our sole discretion. This includes the right to modify, discontinue or remove any Materials, postings, links, pages, services, or other materials at any time and for any reason. You agree that we shall not be liable to you for any modification, general suspension or discontinuance of any aspect of the Site. We may, in our sole discretion, refuse or restrict anyone from access to the entire Site or any portion of the Site at any time.

Severability of Agreement.

If any provision of these Terms is found by a court or other binding authority to be invalid, you agree that every attempt shall be made to give effect to the parties’ intentions as reflected in that provision, and the remaining provisions contained in these Terms shall continue in full force and effect.

Jurisdiction / Location.

Unless otherwise specified, the Site and its Materials are presented solely for purposes such as providing information about Ventura Foods in the United States. We control and operate the Site from within the State of California, and will specifically not be governed by the United Nations Conventions on Contracts for the International Sale of Goods, if otherwise applicable. We make no representation or warranty that the Site, or any Materials or other materials available on the Site, are appropriate or available for use in other locations. Those who choose to access the Site from other locations do so on their own initiative and are responsible for compliance with local laws if applicable.

Applicable Law. These Terms and the resolution of any dispute related to these Terms or the Site shall be governed by and construed in accordance with the laws of the State of California and the United States of America without giving effect to any principles of conflicts of law. Any legal action or proceeding between Ventura Foods and you related to these Terms or otherwise arising out of usage of this Site shall be brought exclusively in a federal or state court of competent jurisdiction sitting in or having jurisdiction over the County of Los Angeles, State of California, and you hereby consent and submit to the exclusive personal jurisdiction and venue of such courts.

Contact Information

If you have any questions or concerns with respect to these Terms or the Site you may contact us at 877-VENTURA.