Coca-Cola Asks Judge to Dismiss Simply Juice PFAS Suit

A proposed class action alleging that Coca-Cola’s Simply-brand juices contain PFAS does not state a plausible claim for relief, Coca-Cola told the Southern District of New York on July 31, 2024.

The plaintiff in Lurenz v. The Coca-Cola Co. alleges that laboratory testing revealed “widespread and uniform” PFAS contamination in Simply juices at levels detrimental to human health.  As a result, the claims made on Simply products—including that the beverages are “All Natural” and “made simply” with “all-natural ingredients”—would mislead a reasonable consumer, the most recent complaint asserts.

The court dismissed the initial complaint for lack of standing in June, but allowed the plaintiff to file a new complaint.  In response, Coca-Cola filed a letter requesting a conference before the company files another motion to dismiss.  The letter argues that the new complaint’s allegations are “even vaguer” than those previously dismissed, making it “impossible to tell” when the plaintiff purchased the contested products.  The plaintiff “still cannot show a concrete economic harm needed to establish Article III standing,” Coca-Cola says.

In addition, Coca-Cola argues that the new complaint still provides insufficient factual detail about the testing that revealed PFAS contamination, which was a factor in the earlier dismissal.  Even if the testing allegations are deemed sufficient, Coca-Cola asserts that the all-natural claims are not misleading.  “[N]o reasonable consumer would understand PFAS—a substance that is not intentionally added to the [juices]—to be an ingredient,” the letter states.

The case is similar to an ongoing suit against L’Oréal, the cosmetics company, for alleged PFAS contamination.  A blog post on that case, written after a dismissal due to standing issues, can be found here.