Class Action Filed Over Switch Sparkling Beverages’ ‘No Sugar Added,’ ‘No Preservatives’ Claims

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Apple & Eve, the maker of Switch Sparkling beverages, finds itself facing a proposed class action filed over the drinks’ “No Sugar Added” and “No Preservatives” claims. According to the lawsuit, the defendants’ labeling and advertising of the products are deceptive in that the drinks have a higher calorie count than competitors’ products and contain citric acid and ascorbic acid, both known preservatives.

The suit first picks at the defendant’s “No Sugar Added” claims, noting that Switch Sparkling beverages “actually contain substantially more calories than your average soft drink, including Coca-Cola.” The lawsuit claims the products are loaded with over 600 percent more calories than two other comparable sparkling juice brands and 29 percent more calories than Coca-Cola.

A reasonable consumer, according to the lawsuit, would expect a product containing no added sugar to be lower in calories and therefore healthier than comparable beverages that do not make the same claim. In fact, the case says, Apple & Eve markets Switch beverages as being “a healthier alternative” to soda and other drinks by urging consumers to “Make The Switch” to its products. The plaintiff claims, however, that he was misled by the defendant’s labeling into believing Switch sparkling beverages contained fewer calories than competing products, and would not have purchased the drinks had he known otherwise.

The suit goes on to say the defendant’s “No Preservatives” claims are similarly false, arguing that the presence of citric acid and ascorbic acid in the drinks contradict this "all-natural" representation. Citric and ascorbic acid, the case explains, are recognized by the FDA as preservatives and have been “well-documented” as such. A reasonable consumer, upon reading the juices’ “No Preservatives” claims, would not expect citric acid and ascorbic acid to be among the products’ ingredients, the case says.

The lawsuit argues that the plaintiff suffered injury by purchasing the defendant’s allegedly mislabeled product, as the juice “did not deliver the qualities it promised and misled him as to its contents.”

The lawsuit specifically names the following Switch beverages:

• Switch Kiwi Berry
• Switch Black Cherry
• Switch Tropical Pineapple
• Switch Watermelon Strawberry
• Switch Grape
• Switch Orange Tangerine
• Switch Hardcore Apple