Judge Tosses ​‘Slightly Sweet’ Gold Peak Tea Lawsuit Alleging Coca-Cola Misled Consumers

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A class action lawsuit alleging that Coca-Cola misrepresents the sugar content in its Gold Peak branded “Slightly Sweet” iced tea has been tossed out by a New York federal judge who said the Class failed to prove its point.

U.S. District Judge Nelson S. Román dismissed all the claims against The Coca-Cola Company, saying that lead Plaintiff Amanda Mazella had failed to support her claim that the “Slightly Sweet” label is false or misleading, especially when viewed in the context of the drink’s full label and nutrition panel, Law360 reports.

The nutrition panel on the bottle of iced tea shows the number of calories and amount of sugar the product contains, and a reasonable consumer would not assume “Slightly Sweet” was a factual representation of the amount of sugar in the iced tea, Román said in his opinion.

Monique Salerno filed the Coca-Cola class action lawsuit in February 2020 and was later replaced as lead plaintiff by Mazella. The Coca-Cola lawsuit alleged that the company violated New York General Business Law and laws covering negligent misrepresentation, breach of express and implied warranty under common law and the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, fraud and unjust enrichment, Law360 reports.

Mazella said in the claim that Gold Peak iced tea labeling saying “Slightly Sweet” misled consumers to believe that the drinks were low in sugar — which they are not.

In January, Coca-Cola filed a motion to dismiss the consumers’ amended complaint and this week Román sided with the company, finding that the term “Slightly Sweet” was puffery, and added that there was no deception claim in the case of the nutrition label, which is fully disclosed.

“Plaintiff has not plausibly alleged that ‘Slightly Sweet’ on the product label would cause a reasonable consumer to assume that it is ‘low sugar’ and thus ‘low calories,'” Román wrote.

“Defendant avers that plaintiff fails to allege that the product is materially misleading. The court agrees.”

Román said that Mazella had not adequately pleaded that “Slightly Sweet” was a false or misleading factual promise, rather than a product description or a material statement amounting to a warranty.

He added that she had failed to show that Coca-Cola’s gains from the sale of the iced tea would be unjust. All of her claims were dismissed.

Do you think the term ‘Slightly Sweet’ implies a reduced amount of sugar in a product? Let us know in the comments section!

Mazella is represented by Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC.

The Coca-Cola Co. is represented by Steven Alan Zalesin and Jane Metcalf of Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP.

The Coca-Cola Slightly Sweet Iced Tea Class Action Lawsuit is Salerno et al. v. The Coca-Cola Company, Case No. 7:20-cv-05235, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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