A New York judge has preliminarily approved a settlement to proceed involving A&W Concentrate Company and Keurig Dr Pepper Inc., the makers of the A&W Root Beer and Cream Sodas. This would require Keurig Dr Pepper to reimburse those who say they were deceived by A&W Root Beer and Cream Soda labels as “Made With Aged Vanilla,” since the soda’s vanilla taste comes from artificial flavoring.
The class-action lawsuit, Sharpe v. A&W Concentrate Co., was initially filed on Aug. 24, 2020 in the U.S. District Court in Eastern New York, alleging that the sodamaker “misleadingly stated on the front of the products’ labels” that aged vanilla was used even though, as the suit reads, “the vanilla flavor comes predominantly — if not exclusively — from an artificial, synthetic ingredient called ethyl vanillin.”
“Plaintiffs claim that consumers interpret defendants’ representation to mean that the characterizing flavoring derives from the vanilla plant, not a cheap inferior substitute for the natural substance,” the suit reads.
“The complaint reiterates that, even if the products contain any aged vanilla, ‘it is in trace or de minimis amounts not detectable by advanced scientific means,’” it continues. “Therefore, defendants’ misleading message that the drink contains ‘aged vanilla’ is not dispelled by the information that the beverages are ‘Natural and Artificially Flavored,’ which fails to communicate that the quantity of the artificial flavoring far exceeds the quantity of natural vanilla.”
Then, on June 5, a settlement was preliminarily approved by U.S. District Court Judge Brian M. Cogan, after initial plaintiff LaShawn Sharpe was joined by co-plaintiffs Jim Castoro and Steve Dailey in the time since the initial filing. As a result, A&W Concentrate Company and Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. will provide eligible consumers with money they spent on the allegedly falsely advertised beverages.
According to court documents, the $15 million settlement covers anyone in the United States who purchased one or more A&W Root Beer or Cream Soda products labeled as “Made With Aged Vanilla” for personal or household use (and not for resale) any time between Feb. 7, 2016 and June 2, 2023. Furthermore, in order to receive compensation, you don’t need proof of purchase.
“A Settlement Class Member who submits a Valid Claim shall receive a minimum cash payment of $5.50 up to a maximum of $25.00,” reads the court document, adding that settlement class members who submit a valid claim without a proof of purchase will receive a cash payment of $5.50.
Those with receipts will get 50 cents per unit for eligible receipts submitted up to a maximum of 39 units, which, when added to the $5.50 all class action members get, totals $25. Cash payments will be provided via single check or electronic payment — recipient’s choice.
Customers covered by the settlement will be able to file their claims on RootBeerAndCreamSodaSettlement.com, though the site isn't yet live as of publication.
Neither Keurig Dr Pepper nor A&W Concentrate Company immediately responded to TODAY.com’s request for comment.
But a look on the Keurig Dr Pepper website shows that the labels for both its Root Beer and Cream Soda no longer appear to include the phrase "Made with Aged Vanilla."
In the preliminary settlement, defendants A&W Concentrate Company and Keurig Dr Pepper deny the allegations of misleading labeling, contending that “the labeling of the Products was truthful and non-misleading, and that purchasers did not pay a ‘premium’ for the Products as a result of any misrepresentations.”
“They further deny that Plaintiffs or any other purchasers have suffered injury as a result of the ‘Made with Aged Vanilla’ representation or are entitled to monetary or other relief,” reads the preliminary settlement.
When reached for comment, a representative for A&W Restaurants — separate from A&W Concentrate Company — pointed out that though the companies share a name and type of product, they are different entities.
“A&W Restaurants, Inc. is a privately owned and operated company separate from Keurig Dr Pepper,” an A&W Restaurants spokesperson tells TODAY.com via email. “The Root Beer served in our restaurants is made fresh on site and has a slightly different formulation that what is served in retail bottles and cans. We do not make any claims regarding vanilla in our restaurant marketing.”
The court appointed lawyers Michael R. Reese and Sue J. Nam from Reese LLP and Spencer Sheehan of Sheehan & Associates, P.C. as counsel for the settlement. One name — Sheehan’s — should ring a bell for those who follow food-and-beverage litigation closely.
Sheehan is well-known for bringing lawsuits against big food-and-beverage companies — more than 400 lawsuits of the kind, as reported by NPR in 2021. (Recall: the 2023 Fireball suit, 2022 Velveeta suit and 2021 Pop-Tarts suit.) He's been nicknamed the “Vanilla Vigilante” for the legion of lawsuits he’s brought over the ingredient’s use.
