Godiva class action alleges dark chocolate product contains unsafe lead levels

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Godiva dark chocolate class action overview: 

• Who: A consumer of dark chocolate sued Godiva.
• Why: The plaintiff says one of the company’s dark chocolate products contains high levels of lead.
• Where: The Godiva dark chocolate class action was filed in a New York federal court.

Godiva didn’t tell customers one of its dark chocolate products contains unsafe levels of lead, a new class action lawsuit alleges.

Plaintiff Kamila Harkavy filed the class action lawsuit against Godiva Chocolatier Inc. on Jan. 10 in a California federal court, alleging violations of state and federal consumer laws. 

According to the lawsuit, the company makes a Godiva Signature Dark Chocolate 72% Cacao bar.

However, according to a December 2022 report by Consumer Reports, certain dark chocolate bars, including the Godiva product named in the lawsuit, have high enough levels of lead and cadmium that “eating just an ounce a day would put an adult over a level that public health authorities and … experts say may be harmful.”

Godiva’s Excellence Dark Chocolate 70% Cocoa bar contains lead levels at 146% of California’s maximum allowable dose level, the Godiva class action states.

Heavy metals can cause serious health implications, Godiva class action alleges

Heavy metals in foods pose a significant safety risk to consumers because they can cause cancer and often irreversible damage to brain development as well as other serious health problems, the Godiva dark chocolate lawsuit states.

Godiva’s omissions on the chocolate labeling harmed consumers, the class action alleges. 

“No reasonable consumer would know, or have reason to know, that the Products contain (or risk containing) Heavy Metals,” the Godiva class action says. “Worse, as companies across the industry have adopted methods to limit heavy metals in their dark chocolates, Defendant has stood idly by with a reckless disregard for its consumers’ health and well-being.”

Harkavy seeks to represent anyone in the United States who bought the product, plus a California subclass.

She sued for breach of California consumer laws and unjust enrichment and seeks certification of the class action, damages, fees, costs and a jury trial.

In December, The Hershey Co. was hit with a class action lawsuit alleging it misleadingly markets some of its Hershey’s and Lily’s brand dark chocolate products by not disclosing that they contain lead and cadmium. Other consumers have sued Trader Joe’s and Mars for similar reasons.

Did you buy the Godiva Signature Dark Chocolate 72% Cacao bar? Let us know your thoughts on this class action in the comments.

The plaintiff is represented by Max S. Roberts, L. Timothy Fisher and Sean L. Litteral of Bursor & Fisher PA and Kevin Laukaitis of Laukaitis Law Firm LLC.

The Godiva class action lawsuit is Kamila Harkavy, et al. v. Godiva Chocolatier Inc., Case No. 3:23-cv-00120, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 

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