Listen to Story Swiss chocolate company Lindt has been in the midst of controversy over accusations of high levels of heavy metals found in its chocolate bars. It recently admitted that its chocolates contain traces of lead and cadmium. According to court documents accessed by Nexstar, Lindt admitted that "lead and cadmium are unavoidable in the food supply.
" The company maintained that the trace amounts present in its products are within regulatory limits and do not qualify as significant safety violations. Lindt further clarified that terms like "expertly crafted" are merely promotional language or "puffery" and should not be interpreted as guarantees. A class action lawsuit was filed against the company Lindt & Spr1⁄4ngli in 2023 by US consumers who accused the chocolatier that its products which were "expertly crafted with the finest ingredients" were mere "puffery" - a legal term describing exaggerated marketing claims that no reasonable consumer would take literally.
They also accused the company of violating labelling rules in states like Alabama, California, Florida, Illinois, Nevada, and New York, asking people to pay a premium price for a not-so-premium product, according to news agency AFP. It happened after Consumer Reports, a non-profit organisation, released its study in 2022 on chemicals in dark chocolate. It found that Lindt contained astronomically high levels of lead in its Excellence Dark Chocolate 85% Cocoa, and cadmium in its Excellence Dark Chocolate 7.
