Costco class action lawsuit overview:
- Who: Plaintiff Mason Maldonado filed a class action lawsuit against Costco Wholesale Corp.
- Why: The plaintiff claims Costco is “health-washing” its Kirkland Signature electrolyte drink mix by labeling it sugar-free despite containing allulose.
- Where: The Costco class action lawsuit was filed in Washington federal court.
AA new class action lawsuit accuses Costco of “health-washing” its Kirkland Signature Hydration Electrolyte Drink Mix by labeling it sugar-free despite containing allulose.
Plaintiff Mason Maldonado filed the class action lawsuit on Sept. 30, alleging allulose is a simple sugar. Maldonado also describes “health-washing” as making a product appear healthier than it is.
According to the lawsuit, federal rules allow a sugar-free claim only when a food contains less than 0.5 grams of sugars per serving. It alleges the label on the Kirkland sugar-free products does not state how much allulose each stick contains. Maldonado argues that, on information and belief, each product exceeds the limit because allulose is the first ingredient and each stick declares 7 grams of total carbohydrate.
“The average consumer who noticed allulose on the ingredient list would be led to believe it was not a sugar, based on the defendant’s repeated ‘SUGAR-FREE’ representations,” the Costco class action lawsuit says.
Maldonado claims a nutrition panel declaring zero grams of total sugars reinforces that belief and an asterisk describing allulose as a dietarily insignificant amount of sugar does not fix the front label issue.
The plaintiff wants to represent a nationwide class and Illinois subclass of consumers who purchased the sugar-free products for personal use during the maximum period permitted by law.
The class action lawsuit claims Costco violated the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act and the Washington Consumer Protection Act and was unjustly enriched.
Dunkin’, CVS face similar claims over zero-sugar, sugar-free drinks
Two other allulose class action lawsuits, filed within a day of the Costco case, cite the same limit threshold violations. Plaintiff Phyllis Wells alleges Dunkin’ Zero drinks advertised as containing “0g of sugar” hold approximately 9 grams of allulose per serving, more than 16 times the threshold, in a lawsuit filed in Massachusetts federal court.
Meanwhile, plaintiff Sue Colby alleges CVS labels its Well Market Replenish drink mix “zero sugar,” although allulose is its first-listed inactive ingredient. She argues allulose falls within the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s definition of total sugars and must be counted toward the 0.5-gram limit.
Colby adds that the supplement panel declares zero grams of total sugars and that shoppers should not be expected to research the chemistry of ingredients.
All three plaintiffs demand jury trials and seek class certification, damages, restitution and attorneys’ fees. Maldonado also demands Costco stops selling its sugar-free products with their current labeling.
Trader Joe’s, Welch’s, David protein bars, Chobani yogurt and Goli gummies are all facing class action lawsuits filed in California, Illinois, Florida and New York, targeting similar sugar-free claims.
Have you ever purchased any of the sugar-free products in these class action lawsuits? Let us know in the comments.
Maldonado is represented by M. Anderson Berry, Gregory Haroutunian and Brook Garberding of Emery Reddy P.C. and Kevin Laukaitis and Maria Cristina Torres Short of Laukaitis Law LLC. Wells is represented by Matthew D. Patton of Patton Legal P.C., Raina C. Borrelli and Samuel J. Strauss of Strauss Borrelli PLLC and Brian Levin of Levin Law P.A. Colby is represented by Peter N. Wasylyk of Law Offices of Peter N. Wasylyk and Kevin Laukaitis of Laukaitis Law LLC.
The Costco class action lawsuit is Maldonado v. Costco Wholesale Corporation, Case No. 2:26-cv-03702, in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington.
The Dunkin’ class action lawsuit is Wells v. Dunkin’ Brands Inc., et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-14463, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts.
The CVS class action lawsuit is Colby v. CVS Health Corporation, et al., Case No. 1:26-cv-00717, in the U.S. District Court for the District of Rhode Island.
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