You may reasonably anticipate that a product with the name Simply Orange Juice which claims to be all-natural would only contain water and freshly squeezed orange juice. You certainly wouldn’t anticipate it to have dangerously high concentrations of hazardous compounds that are permanently related to diseases like cancer, immunosuppression, and reproductive issues.
However, a class action lawsuit filed in a New York federal court on December 28 of last year argues that is precisely what the Coca-Cola-owned Simply Orange products contain, disproving its natural claims.
According to the case, which was covered by Top Class Actions, testing by the plaintiff has really shown that the product contains per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, a class of synthetic chemicals that are by definition not natural.
According to the PFAS Project Lab, per- and polyfluoroalkyl compounds, or PFAS, are a rising source of worry due to the numerous health effects linked to exposure and their propensity to linger in the human body for months to years and in the environment for thousands of years.
These chemicals, which number in the thousands, are frequently utilized in manufacturing and in consumer goods like firefighting foam and stain- and water-resistant items. They have been discovered in the blood of the majority of Americans, in breast milk, umbilical cord blood, and in rainwater all over the world.
Efforts to control these substances have risen as worries about them grow. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revised its safe drinking water limits for two of the most prevalent PFAS to near zero in June of last year.
According to Top Class Actions and The Guardian, plaintiff Joseph Lorenz now asserts that independent testing for the two chemicals in Simply Orange Juice revealed levels that were hundreds of times higher than that.
The in question PFAS Two of the most hazardous compounds ever are PFOA and PFOS. Despite being phased out of active use in the United States, they are still present in the environment.
The lawsuit asserts that because of their inclusion in the juice, its advertising claims are false. According to The Guardian, Simply’s packaging advertises the beverage as being made entirely of natural ingredients, simply natural, having nothing to hide, and using filtered water.
The lawsuit claims that this would lead logical customers to conclude that more care has been taken to get rid of any accidental chemicals or contaminants.
According to Top Class Action, Lorenz is suing Coca-Cola and Simply Orange Juice for fraud, unjust enrichment, breach of promise, and breaching New York consumer laws. He is being defended by Nick Suciu III, Erin Ruben, J.
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Hunter Bryson, Gary Klinger, Jason P. Sultzer, Daniel Markowitz, and Gary Klinger of Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman PLLC. In addition to a New York-based subclass, he is suing on behalf of everyone who has bought the juice in the United States. He is seeking damages, a jury trial, and all fees and costs related to the lawsuit.
The action claims that the wrongdoing of the defendants caused the plaintiff and potential class members to actually experience harm, including financial losses.
According to The Guardian, the chemicals might have gotten into the juice through the water, fruit, or packaging. Tom Neltner, director of chemicals policy for the Environmental Defense Fund, told The Guardian that it was doubtful that they were purposely introduced because then the quantities would have been significantly higher.
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However, he claimed that their existence is a sign of a larger regulatory gap: While the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not been as watchful with regard to food, the EPA has modified its drinking water criteria for PFAS. It checks some products for toxins but sets its safety bar higher than what is recommended by public health experts.
These lawsuits will continue to surface as our ability to quantify PFAS at lower concentrations increases and the FDA lags behind in its tests, Neltner told The Guardian.
