Popular Soda Settles Another Lawsuit About Health Claim on Its Label

In January 2019, a man in Vancouver, Canada filed a class-action lawsuit against Canada Dry Ginger Ale for deceptive labeling and false advertising and after nearly two years, the verdict is finally in.Victor Cardoso alleged the soda company misinformed consumers of the beverage's actual health benefits, which is what prompted him to launch the lawsuit on behalf of "all Canadian resident persons who purchased any Canada Dry Ginger Ale product marketed as 'Made from Real Ginger.'" (Related: 8 Grocery Items That May Soon Be in Short Supply.)Cardoso says he routinely bought Canada Dry Ginger Ale for 10 years to help alleviate stomach issues, believing the dink had "medicinal benefits." During the proceedings, it was found that the pop beverage only includes a trace amount of processed ginger root."They do buy actual ginger, but then what they do is they boil it in ethanol, and that essentially destroys any nutritional or medicinal benefits," Lawyer Mark Canofari said, as quoted by Food&Wine. He explains that Canada Dry uses a ginger concentrate. "One drop fills 70 cans […] and a drop is .05 ml. So that's how little, even of the concentrate, is actually in one drink."Canada Dry Mott Inc. agreed to settle for $218,000 in February, under the condition that it doesn't have to change its products' marketing and labeling. And, in a decision issued just last week, a judge from the Supreme Court of British Columbia ruled that both Cardoso and another plaintiff from Alberta will each receive $1,500. The attorneys, who spent over $220,000 researching and litigating the case, will be given $100,000 in fees and disbursements. The rest of the money will go to the nonprofit Law Foundation of British Columbia.Similar class-action lawsuits have been filed in the U.S., however, not only did they result in settlements, but also came to the agreement that the Canada Dry label would no longer include "Made from Real Ginger."For more, be sure to read up on 33 Fruit-Flavored Sodas Ranked By How Toxic They Are.