- Starbucks is being sued over its “sugar-free” protein beverages (Law360 subscription required), which plaintiffs claim are deceptively labeled due to containing 13 to 21 g of sugar per venti-size beverage from naturally occurring lactose in milk.
- According to the plaintiffs, Starbucks is misleading consumers seeking to reduce or avoid sugar by labeling its beverages as “sugar-free” despite containing up to 25 times the amount of sugar permitted in a product making that claim. In accordance with 21 CFR 101.60(c)(1), a “sugar-free” claim may only be made on a food that contains less than 0.5 g of sugar per reference amount customarily consumed.
- The plaintiffs cited the recent Franco v. Chobani decision, in which the court determined that allulose is a sugar in accordance with FDA regulations, as we have previously blogged. There has been a large uptick in lawsuits targeting products that contain allulose and make “sugar-free” or “zero sugar” claims, highlighting the interest in these claims. Here, the products do not contain any allulose. According to the complaint, lactose’s status as a sugar is even more clear than allulose because FDA expressly lists lactose as a sugar in 21 CFR 101.9(c)(6)(ii). Starbucks says the sugar in the protein drinks comes from the protein-boosted milk and Starbucks does not add sugar but uses a sugar-free syrup for flavor.
- The complaint also alleges that Starbucks violates the mandatory calorie disclaimer for a food labeled as “sugar-free,” but clarifies that the “case is about false and misleading product names.”
- Keller and Heckman will continue to report on lawsuits targeting sugar claims.
