Judge Ices Lawsuit Against Starbucks
A federal judge has dismissed a lawsuit that accused Starbucks of cheating customers by "under-filling" its cold beverages.
The lawsuit alleged that Starbucks is deceiving its customers by serving iced drinks with too much ice cubes and less coffee "than advertised."
"If children have figured out that including ice in a cold beverage decreases the amount of liquid they will receive, the Court has no difficulty concluding that a reasonable consumer would not be deceived into thinking that when they order an iced tea, that the drink they receive will include both ice and tea and that for a given size cup, some portion of the drink will be ice rather than whatever liquid beverage the consumer ordered," wrote Percy Anderson, the U.S. District Judge presiding over the case in his dismissal of the lawsuit last Friday.
Anderson also pointed out that the coffee giant's signage just shows the size of the cups in ounces, but does not say how much liquid will be in the cup.
Starbucks is the largest coffee retailer in the world, with more than 23,000 stores in over 60 countries and with over 13,000 stores in the United States. Starbucks sells millions of cold drinks every year, accounting for billions of dollars in revenue.(dpa)
Other news from the department business & finance
Get the food & beverage industry in your inbox
From now on, don't miss a thing: Our newsletter for the food & beverage sector brings you up to date every Tuesday and Thursday. The latest industry news, product highlights and innovations - compact and easy to understand in your inbox. Researched by us so you don't have to.
