Martinelli’s Lawsuit Calls Apple Juice Recall Over Arsenic Contamination an ‘Abject Failure’

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A proposed class action lawsuit says a voluntary recall by S. Martinelli & Co. after its apple juice was found to contain arsenic has been “a complete and abject failure,” with the program seemingly designed to prevent most consumers from receiving a refund. 

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The 18-page Martinelli’s apple juice lawsuit shares that, on April 16, the manufacturer began its voluntary recall of almost 25,000 cases of one-liter bottles of Martinelli’s Gold Medal Apple Juice due to elevated levels of inorganic arsenic. 

Media reports share that Martinelli’s initiated the voluntary apple juice recall after Maryland authorities found that one production lot tested above the “guidance action level”  for inorganic arsenic. According to the company, the recalled apple juice has a “Best By” date of “09MAR2026” or “10MAR2026” on the front of the bottle above the label and was shipped between March 13 and September 27, 2023, with the majority of the product shipped before July 28, 2023. 

The proposed class action accuses S. Martinelli & Co. of failing to disclose to consumers on product packaging that consumption of the apple juice may increase the risk of arsenic ingestion.  

“This omission leads a reasonable consumer to believe they are not purchasing a product with a known carcinogen when in fact they are purchasing a product contaminated with Arsenic,” the suit scathes. 

As the apple juice lawsuit tells it, Martinelli’s recall has been a failure as the company has made no effort to widely publicize the recall, which requires consumers to return the product for a refund. Martinelli’s is well aware that many buyers have already used the apple juice and thrown it away, the filing says, alleging the apple juice recall was “deliberately designed to preclude the vast majority of consumers from receiving a refund.”

“The class action remedy is superior to Defendant’s failed recall in every conceivable fashion,” the case argues. 

According to Food Safety News, the recalled Martinelli’s apple juice was distributed in Alaska, Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Iowa, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington and Wisconsin. 

The suit contends that consumers who bought now-recalled Martinelli’s apple juice “lost the entire benefit of their bargain” when they spent money on a product that, due to arsenic contamination, has no value. 

Inorganic arsenic, as opposed to the less harmful organic arsenic, is highly toxic and associated with adverse health effects on the cardiovascular, endocrine, nervous and respiratory systems, as well as on the liver, kidney and bladder. Short-term arsenic exposure can cause nausea, vomiting, numbness or burning sensations in the hands and feet, Food Safety News highlights. 

The Martinelli’s apple juice class action lawsuit looks to cover all consumers in the United States who bought one-liter bottles of Martinelli’s Gold Medal Apple Juice during the applicable statute of limitations period. 

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