Kraft Heinz Food Co. Hit with Class Action Over Claims that Capri Sun is Preservative-Free [UPDATE]
Last Updated on February 28, 2020
Tarzian et al. v. Kraft Heinz Food Company
Filed: October 25, 2018 ◆§ 1:18-cv-07148
The maker of Capri Sun faces a lawsuit that claims its "no artificial coloring, flavors, or preservatives" promise for the popular beverage is fraudulent.
Case Updates
Update – October 10, 2019 – Lawsuit Dismissed
The lawsuit detailed on this page was dismissed after an Illinois federal judge determined that the plaintiffs “failed to allege sufficient facts” showing that the citric acid Kraft uses in Capri Sun is artificial and that the company’s claims were therefore false. According to an opinion filed with the court, the judge also stated that out-of-state plaintiffs could not assert claims under Illinois state law and that the plaintiffs’ requested label changes were unwarranted because they were unlikely to purchase Capri Sun in the future.
The judge’s opinion can be read here.
A proposed class action lawsuit filed in Illinois centers on defendant Kraft Heinz Food Company’s claims that its Capri Sun beverages contain “no artificial coloring, flavors, or preservatives.” According to the 88-page lawsuit, the defendant’s labeling of the popular drink is false and deceptive to consumers because Capri Sun contains the preservative citric acid.
Noting nearly 40 flavors of Capri Sun that may have been deceptively labeled, the case charges Kraft Heinz Food Company has violated consumer protection laws in all 50 states and the District of Columbia with its representations that Capri Sun and its “sport” line of beverages are free of chemical preservatives. Citric acid, the case explains, does not fall into any regulatory exemption for what’s considered a food preservative.
According to the suit, Kraft Heinz Food Company intentionally misrepresents that Capri Sun contains no preservatives with the knowledge that reasonable consumers “prefer to avoid foods with potentially unhealthy additives.”
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