Nestle, one of the leading giants of the food and beverage industry seems to be in a legal dispute with one of its bottled water brands. Poland Spring Water, manufactured by Nestle has been slammed with the Federal lawsuit this week, claiming it to be a colossal fraud.  The plaintiffs, in this case, argue that the company has been consistently misleading the consumers by labeling the particular drink as ‘100 percent spring water’ emphasizing on its supreme quality. The legal claim also alleges the defendant’s non-spring water, Poland spring water, as nothing but common ground water that fails to comply with the FDA standards.

As per market records, Nestle Waters was earlier sued in 2003 for falsely advertising that Poland Spring hails from a source deep in the woods of Maine in the U.S. In addition, the lawsuit filed also included several other claims like the breach of contract, deceptive labeling, and more. Back then, Nestle settled the issue, and the controversy of whether these bottled waters are sourced from a spring or not was hushed up and swept under the rug. The suit has now been revived when the Connecticut-based giant seeks to expand in Maine to address the increasing demand for purified bottled water, cite reliable sources.

The plaintiffs have claimed that not even a single drop of the proclaimed Poland Spring water originates from sources that meet the FDA definition of spring water. According to the Food and Drug Administration, to be legally labeled as ‘Spring water’, the fluid must be collected only from an underground formation where the water naturally flows to the Earth’s surface.  It is reported that the defendant, in order to experience a lucrative market share, has been illegally mislabeling Poland Spring Water as 100% natural spring water since its inception in the U.S. food and beverage industry in 1993. The lawsuit claims that the Nestle’s Poland Spring water is actually ordinary ground water that is drawn from wells located near low lying populated areas.

Despite the chain of claims that have brought forth, Nestle has been trying hard to refute all the allegations. As affirmed by one of the spokespersons of the company, Poland Spring water meets all the regulations enforced by FDA defining spring water, and all the federal and state regulations governing spring classification. It has been also reported that Nestle is seeking state approval for a public water district well source located in Lincoln. Holding a couple of plants in the United States and basking in the present success of bottled spring water in the country, it now remains to be seen how Nestle deals with the unavoidable legal controversy.