Although it’s been a contributing member of the sparkling water society since 1981, LaCroix only recently became the lifeblood of millennials. Now, no breakfast, lunch, or dinner is complete without a can of LaCroix an arm’s length away. However, one woman believes we have all been bamboozled by the LaCroix trend. Former LaCroix customer Lenora Rice is actually suing the sparkling water’s parent company, National Beverage Corporation, for false advertising, claiming that LaCroix is not as “innocent” as the company would like us to believe.
The main pull of LaCroix, besides its flashy branding, is that the beverage is 100% natural. The can claims the drink is free of calories, sweeteners, and sodium. But Rice begs to differ. Rice, who is being represented by Chicago’s Beaumont Costales, claims that scientific testing proves that LaCroix actually contains artificial ingredients, including a cockroach insecticide called linalool.
Wait — what?!
“The plaintiff Rice, desiring a healthy, natural beverage, was led to purchase LaCroix sparkling water because of the claims made on its packaging, advertising and web site to be ‘innocent,’ ‘naturally essenced,’ ‘all natural,’ and ‘always 100% natural,'” the suit reads per Beaumont Costales website.
“However, LaCroix in fact contains ingredients that have been identified by the Food and Drug Administration as synthetic. These chemicals include limonene, which can cause kidney toxicity and tumors; linalool propionate, which is used to treat cancer; and linalool, which is used in cockroach insecticide.”
😱 (puts down his sparkling and laments: this is why we can’t have nice things)
— David Begnaud (@DavidBegnaud) October 5, 2018
"Testing reveals that LaCroix contains a number of artificial ingredients, including linalool, which is used in cockroach insecticide...”https://t.co/CJypY6TqsI
The lawsuit further states that National Beverage Corporation is aware of the synthetic ingredients and chemicals in LaCroix, yet chose to mislead customers into believing it’s “100% natural.”
According to CBS Philly, National Beverage Corporation is denying these allegations and stated that the suit was filed, “without basis in fact or law regarding the natural composition of its LaCroix sparkling waters… All essences contained in LaCroix are certified by our suppliers to be 100% natural.”
This is what I get for swapping beer for soda water: “Sparkling water claims to be ‘all-natural’ but contains artificial ingredients, including a chemical used in cockroach insecticide.”https://t.co/cYREAkJ6sk
— Marc Caputo (@MarcACaputo) October 4, 2018
If you have purchased LaCroix under the impression that it is 100% natural, you can also join Rice and Beaumont Costales’ plaintiff list. The firm can be contacted at 773-831-8000.
We certainly hope National Beverage Corporation is in the right because we’ve consumed so much LaCroix. Until the truth is revealed, we’ll certainly think twice before popping open another can.
