The Charged Lemonade Lawsuit
Graphic by Josephine Seidelmann
Unless you have been living under a rock (or on our campus, a Panera desert), you’ve likely heard about the lawsuits against Panera due to the caffeine content of their increasingly popular charged lemonades.
Initially, I intended to focus on whether or not these lawsuits were warranted or if they were senseless lawsuits. However, after looking into both the cases and statements from the friends and families of the deceased, I think it is more important to discuss why people are adamantly against these lawsuits. As well as why their cases aren't as frivolous as some believe.
The main argument against the plaintiffs in the lawsuit is that “they should have known how much caffeine was in the charged lemonades,” as one UMN student stated when asked about their opinion on the case. However, the sentiment behind this opinion is based on misleading information about the lawsuits.
According to famous TikTok comedian StinkyAsher, who was close friends with Sarah Katz, one of the driving factors behind the lawsuit is that Panera was advertising their charged lemonade as having “about as much caffeine as a Dark Roast Coffee.” Although this statement is true regarding the caffeine content per ounce, a regular-sized charged lemonade (20oz) is larger than a regular Panera dark roast (12oz), and the large charged lemonade (30 oz) well exceeds a large dark roast (30 oz).
Sarah’s immediate friends and family state that although Sarah had a heart condition, she was able to drink a reasonable amount of caffeine safely and as someone who was extremely vigilant about her health, would not have drank the charged lemonade if she had known the true caffeine content.
The second lawsuit is related to a man drinking multiple refills of charged lemonades. Panera has consistently advertised its charged lemonades alongside its unlimited sip club, which particularly emphasizes the unlimited refills the subscription provides.
But why is the emotional response towards the plaintiffs so intense? Well, like the infamous McDonald's coffee case, Panera likely has some involvement in the outrage. In 1992, an elderly woman suffered severe burns from a McDonald’s coffee spilling on her lap. After suing McDonald’s (to cover her hospital bills), many pointed out, “Coffee is supposed to be hot.” What wasn’t stated was the fact that the coffee was 180-190o Fahrenheit, near boiling.
If the controversy is partly due to Panera, it would be far from surprising. However, the implications it has for future relationships between consumers and corporations will be determined by the lawsuits’ outcomes as well as the public perception of said outcomes.