Starbucks Class Action Alleges Company Underfills Its Packaged Cold Brew Products

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Starbucks Underfilled Cold Brew Concentrate Class Action Overview:

• Who: Starbucks is being sued by a customer who says it underfills its Cold Brew Concentrate coffee products.
• Why: The customer says the packaging promises eight servings when it only contains about five servings.
• Where: The case was filed in New York federal court.

Don’t mess with a man’s coffee. Starbucks is being sued by a coffee lover who alleges the multinational company underfills its Cold Brew Concentrate coffee products.

Plaintiff Kenneth Telesco filed the class action complaint against Starbucks Corporation Apr. 1 in a New York federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws. 

“Starbucks engages in widespread false and deceptive advertising on its [Cold Brew Concentrate] Coffee Products,” Telesco alleges. “In a practice that offends reasonable consumer expectations, Defendant employs a classic bait-and-switch scheme that causes unsuspecting consumers to spend more money for less than the advertised amount of coffee they believe they are purchasing.”

He says the packaging and labeling of the cold brews prominently advertise that they will produce a certain number of servings when, in fact, they do not.

Starbucks Uses Inconsistent Serving Sizes, Lawsuit Alleges

The lawsuit alleges that, according to the FDA’s Code of Regulations for coffee, one serving is equivalent to 12 fluid ounces. 

Telesco purchased a Cold Brew Concentrate, which he says prominently advertises on its front labels that one bottle “Makes 8 Servings When Prepared As Directed.”

“But according to both the CFR and Starbucks’s own measurements, the Coffee Products only produce 5 servings of coffee per 32 ounce bottle,” Telesco says.

This is because, to get the eight servings promised, Starbucks uses inconsistent serving sizes, Telesco says. 

Per the instructions located on the side of the bottle, one serving of Starbucks Cold Brew Coffee consists of 4 fluid ounces of the Coffee Products and 4 fluid ounces of water – for a total serving size of 8 fluid ounces, he says. 

“But … 8 fluid ounces is not one serving of coffee, it is two-thirds of a single serving,” Telesco alleges.

The class action lawsuit says customers were deceived by false marketing into buying a product that was not worth as much as it represented.

Telesco is looking to represent anyone who bought the cold brew product in the United States plus a New York subclass. He’s suing for breach of warranty and under New York consumer laws and seeking certification of the class action, an injunction, fees, costs, interests, damages and a jury trial.

Meanwhile, ​​a major recall has been issued for cases of popular Starbucks beverages sold in stores nationwide.

On Sept. 26, 2021, the FDA initiated a nationwide recall for more than 250,000 cases of Starbucks Doubleshot Espresso drinks in three flavors. 

What do you think of the allegations in this lawsuit against Starbucks? Let us know in the comments! 

The plaintiffs are represented by Frederick J. Klorczyk III, L. Timothy Fisher and Brittany S. Scott of Bursoe & Fisher, P.A. 

The Starbucks Underfilled Cold Brew Class Action Lawsuit is Kenneth Telesco v. Starbucks Corporation, Case No. 7:22-cv-02687, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

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