Trader Joe’s Sour Gummies Subject of Class Action Lawsuit Filed Over Alleged ‘Undisclosed Artificial Flavor’

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A proposed class action case recently removed to federal court in California outlines allegations that defendants Trader Joe’s and its parent company falsely advertise their “Trader Joe’s Ts & Js Sour Gummies” as all natural despite the presence of an “undisclosed artificial flavor.” According to the lawsuit, the defendants’ advertising of Trader Joe’s sour gummies violates California consumer protection law in that an artificial flavor must be identified “on both the front-of-package label and the product ingredient list.”

“[The defendants’] packaging, labeling, and advertising scheme is intended to give consumers the impression that they are buying a premium, ‘all natural’ product with only natural flavoring instead of a product that is artificially flavored,” the plaintiff charges. 

According to the lawsuit, lab testing of Trader Joe’s sour gummies found the product is flavored with a synthetic petrochemical called d-1 malic acid, which the case says creates the gummies’ “sour flavor” and stimulates and reinforces the product’s lemon, grapefruit, lime and tangerine characteristics.