“Greenwashing”: Keurig has agreed to pay K-Cup users in class action lawsuit settlement

Keurig must pay Canadian customers up to $50 per person after a class-action lawsuit found the coffee brand's guidance on recycling its pods misleading.

Why did Keurig settle in a class-action lawsuit?

According to the Financial Post, Keurig—the coffee brand owned by Keurig Dr. Pepper—settles for $1.85 million in Canada over inaccurate information about the recyclability of its one-time-use K-Cups. While the company claims the K-Cups can be recycled, some areas do not accept the single-use plastics in their recycling programs.

Last year, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) also charged Keurig Dr. Pepper for similar inaccurate statements about recycling K-Cups.

Canadians who purchased K-Cups or Keurig machines from June 8, 2016, to the present could get paid if the court approves the settlement this coming December.

Keurig maintains that its K-Cups are recyclable in many provinces in Canada, despite the lawsuit.

“The company remains committed to advancing sustainable solutions and to working with consumers, municipalities, and partners to ensure that its products can be effectively collected, sorted, and recycled,” a Keurig spokesperson tells the Financial Post.

However, Canada's Competition Bureau fined the company in 2022. It claims that “some local recycling programs require additional steps to recycle the pods" beyond Keurig's instructions.

Claimants can file on the settlement website after the court's approval.

How did customers react to the lawsuit?

In a post on Reddit, shoppers react to last year's charge by the SEC.

Keurig customers suggested that the company may continue to mislead customers about the K-Cup's recyclability. Some say they'll stop using K-Cups due to the lawsuit.

"At this rate, they would make more money with the greenwashing and just paying the fine every year," one says.

"Main reason I stopped using those pods, too much waste!" another writes.

"$150,000,000 might make them think twice. The keyword here is: might," a third remarks.

"Good thing we're pursuing this now after everyone has moved on from Keurig to something else," a fourth adds.

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