A class action lawsuit claims Minute Maid Fruit Punch contains citric acid, a synthetic flavoring.

On Oct. 11, 2026, Annette Alarcon, Deborah Patt and Deidre Moorhead filed a class action lawsuit against The Coca-Cola Co. in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.

The lawsuit alleges Coca-Cola labels Minute Maid Fruit Punch as made with 100% natural flavors when the drink contains a synthetic flavoring ingredient: industrially manufactured citric acid.

The citric acid allegations

All three plaintiffs say they read the natural flavors claim as a promise of no synthetic or artificial flavoring ingredients. Had they known the drink contained citric acid, they would not have bought it or would have paid less for it, they claim.

Minute Maid’s ingredient list says its citric acid “provides tartness.” The complaint alleges that wording is a sign the ingredient works as a flavoring, not a preservative, in a pasteurized drink with a pH of 2.86.

Nearly all commercial citric acid now comes from industrial fermentation with a mutant strain of black mold, aspergillus niger, the proposed class action contends. An Environmental Protection Agency supply chain profile cited in the suit describes a process that starts with corn and uses sulfuric acid and calcium hydroxide to recover the acid.

The lawsuit also cites a National Organic Standards Board finding that citric acid made this way is synthetic along with 2001 Food and Drug Administration warning letters telling two food makers that adding citric acid to a food prevents them from making claims that the food is natural.

The lawsuit's claims

The lawsuit brings several claims:


  • Breach of express warranty, under both California and New York law, which are claims that treats the label as a promise the drink did not keep

  • California Unfair Competition Law, which bars unlawful, unfair and fraudulent business practices and supports three separate claims

  • California False Advertising Law, which prohibits misleading advertising

  • California Consumers Legal Remedies Act, which bars misrepresenting a product's characteristics or quality

  • New York General Business Law Sections 349 and 350, which prohibit deceptive business practices and false advertising

The plaintiffs seek refunds, damages, punitive damages and Coca-Cola’s profits from the drink plus a court order requiring the company to drop the natural flavors claim and run corrective ads.

What the lawsuit means for Minute Maid Fruit Punch buyers

The proposed classes cover people in California and New York who bought Minute Maid Fruit Punch in their own state going back three to four years depending on the claim.

There is no settlement, no claims process and no money available at this time.