Trident Sugar-Free Gum Label Overstates Xylitol Content, Class Action Says

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A proposed class action lawsuit claims Mondelēz Global, LLC has misled consumers by implying on product labels that its Trident sugar-free gum is sweetened primarily with xylitol, an effective plaque reducer.

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The 13-page lawsuit says that despite the product’s prominent front-label description as a “Sugar Free Gum With Xylitol,” its principal sweetener is actually sorbitol, a cheaper and less powerful agent against tooth decay compared to xylitol.

According to the suit, the sugar-free gum contains roughly twice as much sorbitol, which appears first in the product’s ingredients list, as it does xylitol. At that ratio, the filing says, the latter’s “superior relative benefits to oral health are practically extinguished.”

As the case explains, gum that contains only xylitol is proven to be more effective against plaque than products with both xylitol and sorbitol. In fact, xylitol has been shown to actively reduce oral plaque, while sorbitol is recognized only as a general deterrent against tooth decay, the complaint relays.

The filing charges that the defendant’s greater reliance on sorbitol comes down to higher profit margins, as xylitol is more expensive than its less-potent counterpart.

The plaintiff, a New York resident, purchased the Trident sugar-free gum in the past few years based on the representations that its sweetening component was primarily xylitol, or at least that xylitol was present at a significant level, the suit says. The woman expected the amount of xylitol to be substantial enough to “provide the superior effects on oral health” for which it is known, the case states.

Like other consumers, the plaintiff would not have paid as much, or purchased the gum at all, had she known that sorbitol was actually its principal ingredient, the complaint claims.

The lawsuit looks to represent anyone residing in New York, Arkansas, Montana, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho or Alaska who purchased Trident “Sugar Free Gum With Xylitol” during the applicable statutes of limitations.

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