La Croix is easily the most divisive beverage on the market with its bubbly concoction of water. Now, a new lawsuit accuses the sparkling water brand of misleading customers by calling it’s beverages “natural.” The lawsuit accuses La Croix’s parent company, National Beverage Corporation, of “using non-natural flavorings and synthetic compounds.” National Beverage Company has denied the allegations against them, having been promoted as a “natural” sodium and an alternative to soda that is calorie-free. It must have worked as sales for La Croix beverages were up 17 percent in 2017. The lawsuit also claims that chemicals were used in La Croix in order to make their beverages “taste or smell a certain way.” It also claims that one of the ingredients causes kidney tumors and another ingredient is also used in cockroach insecticide. Roger Clemens, a nutritional scientist, refutes these claims saying the the compounds found in the beverage are safe. “These compounds are found in nature, mostly in fruit such as oranges, limes, strawberries, pineapple, bananas . . . so we consume these compounds every day if we eat any kind of fruit.”

National Beverage Corporation claims the ingredients used in their products are “derived from the natural essence oils from the named fruit used in each of the flavors and are certified by our suppliers to be 100% natural.” Clemens commented on what it means when a product is “natural,” saying, “I believe that consumers today are confused with the word ‘natural.’ They believe ‘natural’ means safer, natural means more wholesome.”