Starbucks says its dark roast blend is pure coffee — but it’s not, complaint argues

Starbucks is accused of deceiving buyers with one of its coffee blends sold in grocery stores.

Though the company labels its Dark French Roast Coffee as pure, “100% Arabica Coffee,” it’s not, a complaint filed with the North Carolina attorney general in late September argues.

Instead, the blend is “adulterated” with high and “abnormal” levels of potassium, which unnaturally changes its flavor and could be potentially harmful to some, according to Puroast Coffee, a North Carolina-based company that filed the complaint.

Lab tests of Starbucks Dark French Roast Coffee conducted by Dr. Salam A. Ibrahim, a research professor at the North Carolina A&T State University, revealed potassium levels exceeding the amount typically included in other national coffee brands, a Nov. 2 Puroast Coffee news release said.

A Starbucks spokesperson told McClatchy News on Nov. 2 that the company is aware of the complaint and believes “it is without merit.”

Meanwhile, Kerry Sachs, the CEO of Puroast Coffee, said in a statement that “it is well-known that adding buffers like potassium to coffee reduces acid and bitterness. Coffee companies are required to disclose additives. … It’s hard to understand why Starbucks is doing this without telling anyone.”

However, the Starbucks spokesperson said the company does not add potassium to its Dark French Roast Coffee, adding that the element naturally occurs in coffee.

“We are confident that the labeling for our Dark French Roast coffee is fully compliant with all U.S. Food and Drug Administration labeling requirements,” the spokesperson said.

A package of Starbucks Dark French Roast Coffee states the only ingredient is whole bean Arabica coffee, leaving out potassium, the complaint argues. Puroast Coffee says the complaint has been referred to the North Carolina Department of Agriculture for an investigation.

The department’s public information officer, Brandon Herring, told McClatchy News in a statement on Nov. 2 that its “Food and Drug Protection Division has not received the complaint about this.”

Puroast Coffee says it discovered the potassium in Starbucks’ dark roast blend because it often monitors competing brands’ products, according to the release.

Because of the undeclared potassium, Starbucks is selling “a coffee product with a lower level of acidity than otherwise would result from its normal roasting methods, thereby appealing to consumers seeking a less bitter, lower acid coffee beverage, while continuing to represent that its product is ‘100%’ coffee and lacking any other ingredient,” the complaint states.

The complaint, which includes lab results, argues the added ingredient could expose those at risk of hyperkalemia — when there’s high levels of potassium in the bloodstream — to the “potential for adverse health consequences.”

“The tests completed by labs at North Carolina A&T found Starbucks Dark French Roast had potassium levels that are more than 14 standard deviation points above the other national brands we tested,” Ibrahim said in a statement. “This is a significant spike that suggests potassium was added to the coffee during processing.”

Additionally, the complaint says Starbucks is unfairly competing with other coffee producers in North Carolina that do not put chemical additives in their products, such as Puroast Coffee.

The complaint comes after other popular brands have been hit with lawsuits accusing them of misleading branding in recent months.

A California man filed a lawsuit against the makers of Texas Pete hot sauce, accusing T.W. Garner Food Co. of “false marketing and labeling” after discovering the sauce is made in North Carolina, not Texas, McClatchy News reported.

Another man filed a lawsuit against Kraft Heinz over its Country Time lemonade mixes, accusing the company of not including “enough powder drink” as labeled, McClatchy News reported.

Puroast Coffee was founded in 1986 and is headquartered in High Point, which is about 75 miles northeast of Charlotte.

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