A lawsuit filed against the hugely popular “Shark Tank” phenomenon, Poppi prebiotic soda, claims the drink was not as “gut healthy” as advertised.
Plaintiff Christine Copps of San Francisco The class action lawsuit was filed Wednesday on behalf of itself and Poppi’s consumers “in the same position” against its parent company, VNGR Beverage LLC, based in Austin, Texas.
Poppi quickly rose through the ranks in the beverage world – capitalizing on relevant marketing and scoring shelf space at popular retailers like Whole Foods, Target and Costco.
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The plaintiffs alleged that Poppi’s “gut health” promises were false because the soda “contains only two grams of prebiotic fiber, an amount too low to cause significant gut health benefits.”
“Accordingly, a consumer would need to drink more than four Poppi soft drinks in one day to achieve any potential health benefits from prebiotic fiber,” the lawsuit claimed.
“However, even if the consumer did so, the high sugar content of Poppi would offset most, if not all, of the purported gut health,” they added.
Copps said she “reasonably relied” on Poppi’s promise of a gut-healthy soda and decided to pay a “significant price premium.”
“Ms. Cobbs, however, did not receive the benefit of her deals because the products did not actually contain enough ‘prebiotics’ to achieve any meaningful ‘gut health,'” the lawsuit states.
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The lawsuit also cited studies that showed that consuming too much aloe vera inulin — the type of prebiotic found in the bobby plant — can actually have adverse health effects.
“Similarly, Ms. Cobbs was not aware that excessive consumption of these products could negatively impact her health,” she added.
The lawsuit “demands” a jury trial, alleging that Poppi falsely advertised the health benefits of its products.
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Fox News Digital has reached out to Poppi for comment.