“Costco,” attorneys say, “failed to perform or require any heavy metal testing, or to disclose the presence of heavy metals.”
A group of consumers have filed a class-action lawsuit accusing Costco of selling protein powder “tainted” by toxic metals.
According to The Guardian, the lawsuit was filed Tuesday in a Washington state-based federal court. In court documents, attorneys claim that Costco violated consumer protection and false advertising laws by marketing Orgain’s “Orgainic Protein Powder” as “high-quality, clean, and nutritious without disclosing the presence of heavy metals, including lead, cadmium, and arsenic.”
“Heavy metals are known to pose significant and adverse health risks and consequences to humans,” the lawsuit says.
The lawsuit suggests that Costco knew, or should have known, about this alleged contamination—and potentially broke the law by failing to inform consumers about the potential dangers associated with Orgainic.
“As a major national retailer with sophisticated supply-chain management and quality control processes, Costco knew or should have known about the heavy metals in the Contaminated Products it sells, including the Contaminated Products,” the lawsuit says. “Despite this knowledge, or constructive knowledge, Costco continued to sell the Contaminated Products without any warning or disclosure to consumers regarding the presence or material risk of heavy metals in the Contaminated Products.”
The lawsuit further claims that “reasonable” consumers had no way to “learn of the inclusion of heavy metals in the contaminated products unless Costco” chose to include “a proper disclosure, because identifying the presence of heavy metals requires expensive and sophisticated laboratory testing.”
“Costco,” attorneys say, “failed to perform or require any heavy metal testing, or to disclose the presence of heavy metals.”
A spokesperson for the Orgain brand has since said that, “while trace amounts of substances that occur in the environment can be present in plant-based ingredients, our products comply with applicable food safety standards and guidance.”
“We stand behind the safety and quality of our products,” Orgain added.
But attorneys for the proposed class say that they’ve already tested Orgainic and “confirmed the presence of heavy metals” in the company’s protein powder.
“Defendant’s business practices – including the misrepresentations and omissions – were deceptive, misleading, unfair, and/or false because, among other things, the contaminated products contained undisclosed toxic heavy metals,” the lawsuit states.
The lawsuit seeks a court order requiring Costco to “disclose the presence and levels of heavy metals” in its products and to stop selling such items “without adequate disclosure of heavy metal contamination.”
Sources
Costco accused in lawsuit of selling protein powder ‘tainted’ with toxic heavy metals
Costco faces lawsuit over Orgain protein powder with toxic metals
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