Gut Check
When we were first married, my wife used to drink tons of Diet Mountain Dew. She loves a little jolt of caffeine in the morning but doesn’t like coffee. Since learning that diet soda is not necessarily good for you, she began looking for healthier alternatives.
Poppi is one of those options. Poppi is a soda that is made with fruit juice, apple cider vinegar, and inulin, a prebiotic fiber. Prebiotics are fibers that feed probiotics, the microorganisms living in our intestines, which work to improve digestion, immune health and other bodily functions. Because it contains prebiotics, Poppi was marketed as being able to reduce constipation, facilitate weight management, and help with blood sugar control by boosting healthy gut bacteria.
“Better-for-you”-ingredient beverages, such as Poppi, have surged in popularity. Earlier this year, Coca-Cola rolled out Simply Pop, a prebiotic-packed soda flavored with fruit juice and vitamins that it claims, “supports gut health.” Becca Kerr, CEO of Coca-Cola’s nutrition unit, said “We saw the prebiotic soda space really emerging as an area of interest for consumers, and we were paying really close attention to it.” According to their research, healthier sodas are projected to generate $2 billion in sales by 2029.
In a renewed cola war, PepsiCo announced in March that it would be buying Poppi for $1.95 billion, 10 years after it was founded. VNGR Beverage, LLC, the company selling to Pepsi, is going to need that money to settle its class action lawsuit.
In the spring of 2024, plaintiffs in California filed several class action lawsuits, which were later consolidated into a single suit in June of 2024, that alleged marketing claims on Poppi cans stating “for a healthy gut” were not backed by scientific evidence. The complaint alleges that consumers made purchases based on those claims.
The amount of prebiotic fiber in one can of Poppi is “too low to cause meaningful gut health benefits,” the plaintiffs assert in their suit. “Poppi soda only contains two grams of prebiotic fiber, an amount too low to cause meaningful gut health benefits for the consumer from just one can,” the suit reads.
“Accordingly, a consumer would need to drink more than four Poppi sodas in a day to realize any potential health benefits from its prebiotic fiber,” the suit alleges. “However, even if a consumer were to do this, Poppi’s high sugar content would offset most, if not all, of these purported gut health benefits.” Further, the plaintiffs accuse Poppi of not warning consumers about the risks of prebiotics, such as bloating and diarrhea.
Poppi recently agreed to settle the lawsuit for $8.9 million. Pursuant to the settlement agreement, however, the company denies “any and all alleged wrongdoing or liability.” Poppi directs consumers to the settlement website for details, which can be found here: https://poppisettlement.com/
According to the website, consumers who purchased any flavors or sizes of Poppi between Jan. 23, 2020, and July 18, 2025, were eligible for a portion of the settlement.
Those who are approved as eligible and submit a claim may receive the following compensation of up to 75¢ per single can, $3 per four-pack, $6 per eight-pack, and $9 per 12-pack or 15-pack. There is a $16 reimbursement cap for consumers who don’t have proof of purchase.
With the surge in popularity of “better-for-you” sodas, scientists have dedicated a field of study to their health benefits and have dubbed it Fizz-ics.
Reg P. Wydeven
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