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The makers of Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea face a class action lawsuit alleging the drink is deceptively sold and marketed.
New York City resident James Prater, the named plaintiff in the complaint, argues that the label on a can of an Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea fraudulently deceives buyers into believing the drink is low in calories.
He further claims the company violates state consumers laws with the practice and is unjustly enriched from the sales of their line of Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea beverages.
The complaint’s main argument centers on standards set by the Food and Drug Administration in regards to a food product’s nutrient content. Prater says Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea’s labeling fails these standards.
“The FDA established [regulations on] nutrient content claims to prevent consumers being deceived by a product when the terms used to describe the food are not consistent with the message they convey,” Prater said in the complaint.
The class action lawsuit takes issue with the term “lite” and how it’s used in describing the drink, arguing shoppers have faith products marketed this way are lower in calories.
He further claims Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea drinks are required by the FDA to compare the “light” or “lite” claims with a similar product on labeling.
“However, the Product has so many calories and grams of sugar per serving size that it would be difficult to fathom a reference food,” he says, alleging that a 12-ounce can of Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea has 10 calories less than a similar sized container of Coca Cola.
By these standards, Arnold Palmer Iced Tea would be required by the FDA to be at least a third less in calories than other similar drinks.
The FDA’s guidelines on daily sugar consumption advise someone with a 2,000 calorie a day diet eat about 50 grams of sugar a day. A 12-ounce can of Arnold Palmer Iced Tea contains about 19 grams of sugar.
Prater contends the “lite” label is fraudulent because there isn’t another similar beverage Arnold Palmer Iced Tea can be compared to because the drink has such high calorie content.
“Branding and packaging of the Product is designed to – and does – deceive, mislead, and defraud plaintiffs and consumers,” Prater says, adding he paid premium prices for Arnold Palmer Iced Tea because of these beliefs.
This is not the first time Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea faced challenges in court. A Michigan man filed a similar class action lawsuit against the AriZona beverage company Tea in September, with claims that its zero calorie line of drinks actually contain 15 calories.
The FDA is working on educating consumers on interpreting nutrition labels with an initiative launched two years ago.
“Consuming too much added sugars can make it difficult to meet nutrient needs while staying within calorie limits,” according to the FDA’s Dietary Guidelines for Americans.
Prater is seeking a Class made up of buyers of Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea in New York, Ohio, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Maryland.
Formally, the class action lawsuit accuses AriZona beverage company of violating consumer protection laws in New Jersey, Ohio, Maryland and Pennsylvania; violating New York General Business Law and the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act, fraud, negligent misrepresentation, and unjust enrichment. The Class is seeking monetary damages.
Have you purchased Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea thinking that it was lower in calories or sugars? Let us know in the comments below.
Counsel representing the plaintiffs in this class action lawsuit is Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates PC.
The Arnold Palmer Lite Iced Tea Class Action Lawsuit is Prater v. Arizona Beverages USA LLC, Case No. 1:20-cv-09108, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.
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1,533 thoughts onArnold Palmer ‘Lite’ Iced Tea Is Mislabeled, Class Action Lawsuit Says
Please add me
I’ve been buying this tea for about 10 years and had no idea what was going on. Besides water that’s all I drink. I want to join the lawsuit but live in Alabama. I’m so tired of companies deceiving consumers and only getting a slap on the wrist. My lung surgery resulted in Hypothyroidism which not only causes weight gain but, makes it difficult to lose weight. Therefore, learning about this deception is very disturbing.
Please add me thanks
People just want free money and guess what?? The more people on a class action suit you might get $2.00 ! Yay!
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Imagine going on a diet and not reading the nutritional information of what you consume. Every “add me” is from someone who genuinely can not read a label.
I thought it was low calorie also the drink doesn’t say it has caffeine which is does