A court in the Southern District of New York recently dismissed a lawsuit alleging that an “All Natural” representation on the front label of defendant’s beverage products was false and misleading because the products contained synthetic citric acid and used vegetable and fruit juice concentrates for color.  Valencia v. Snapple Beverage Corp., 2024 WL 1158476 (S.D.N.Y. Mar. 18, 2024).

Plaintiff alleged that the “All Natural” representation on the label was misleading because it used citric acid, “an industrially produced, synthetic ingredient.”  The court held that this generalized allegation about the production of citric acid was not sufficient to adequately allege the citric acid used in defendant’s products was indeed industrially produced.  The court observed that plaintiff did not, for example, allege that they tested the product to confirm the citric acid was synthetic.  Even if this conclusory statement was sufficient to allege that the products contained the industrially produced citric acid, the court added, it was not clear a reasonable consumer would regard the industrially-produced version as unnatural.  The court reasoned that the industrially-produced citric acid was derived from Aspergillus niger, which is itself natural.  Additionally, plaintiff only alleged that synthetic agents were used in the process of producing the citric acid, but did not allege that the resulting citric acid contained synthetic agents.  Finally, plaintiff did not describe how the citric acid derived from Aspergillus niger differed chemically from the citric acid derived from fruits.  As a result, the court concluded, plaintiff failed to adequately allege that the citric acid in the products rendered the “All Natural” statement misleading.

Plaintiff also alleged that the “All Natural” representation was misleading because the beverage contained vegetable and fruit juice concentrates for coloring.  Plaintiff contended that consumers would not expect “All Natural” beverages to contain added coloring even if the coloring came from natural sources.  The court disagreed, reasoning that it was not plausible that a reasonable consumer would think that adding a natural product—vegetable and fruit juice concentrates—to a natural product renders the product not natural.  Finally, the court noted that if any consumers were confused as to whether “All Natural” meant that the products contained natural ingredients for colors, they could read the ingredients lists, which would clarify their understanding. This decision will be helpful for the many food and beverages companies that face (or have been threatened with) class action litigation regarding their use of citric acid and concentrates.