Keurig Dr Pepper Faces Lawsuit For Selling Bottled Water With Excessive Arsenic
The bottler took steps to fix the problem only after it was reported on by Consumer Reports, the suit claims
Update: On November 8, U.S. District Judge Susan Illston dismissed the lawsuit, finding that the plaintiff failed to show that the contaminated water affected him personally. But Illston left the door open for Pels to file an amended complaint, and dismissed Keurig's argument that FDA's bottled water quality standards don't apply to Peñafiel. The statute, Illston wrote, "clearly does apply to the Peñafiel mineral spring water."
Update: On June 21, Keurig Dr Pepper withdrew its Peñafiel bottled water for sale in the U.S., citing high arsenic levels.
This story was originally published on June 5, 2019.
Keurig Dr Pepper "acted irresponsibly and unlawfully" by selling a bottled water product in the U.S. with unsafe levels of arsenic, according to a federal lawsuit filed Monday.
The 20-page suit (PDF), filed by California resident John Pels, cites a series of articles published by Consumer Reports, which highlighted a number of instances where the manufacturer's product—Peñafiel Mineral Spring Water—had registered levels of arsenic that exceeded federal standards.
CR tested Peñafiel, as part of an an April investigation into bottled water, and found it had 18 parts per billion of arsenic on average, above the 10 ppb limit set by the Food and Drug Administration. In response, Keurig Dr Pepper conducted tests of its own, and said it discovered similar results.
The company then stopped production of the spring water for two weeks to enhance filtration of the product. It hasn't responded to requests for comment on whether it has resumed production, selling, or importing the water into the U.S.
Pels points to follow-up reports from CR in recent weeks that showed state and federal regulators had flagged Peñafiel for excessive arsenic several times, as early as 2013. The company, he claims, had to have known about the presence of high levels of arsenic well before CR's story.
The suit could apply to all California consumers who bought Peñafiel over the past several years. Pels asserts multiple legal claims, including violations of California's consumer protection, unfair competition, and false advertising laws.
Pels is seeking a court order against Keurig Dr Pepper that finds the manufacturer's conduct illegal and requires it to address the issue.
David Lake, the attorney representing Pels, declined to comment when reached late Wednesday.
