A class-action lawsuit was filed against the Girl Scouts of the USA this week over accusations that their cookies contain toxic metals and the herbicide glyphosate.
Consumer and food-purity groups, including GMOScience and Moms Across America, first publicized their allegations against Girl Scout cookies in December.
According to their research involving 25 types of the cookies, 100% tested positive for the herbicide and drying-out chemical glyphosate, and 100% tested positive for at least four of five heavy or toxic metals, including aluminum, arsenic, cadmium, lead and mercury. GMOScience said that glyphosate was linked to “cancer, endocrine disruption, gut issues, miscarriages, sperm damage, autism, neurotoxicity, and reproductive damage,” while cadmium and lead were linked to cancer and brain disorders.
The plaintiffs in the federal suit filed Monday in the Eastern District of New York cited this research in their complaint and said that they were harmed because they paid full price without being aware of the chemical and metal levels in the cookies. They are seeking at least $5 million in damages. One of the plaintiffs, Amy Mayo, voluntarily withdrew her claims Tuesday.
The others, though, are continuing their suit, which targets not only the Girl Scouts but the companies that actually bake the cookies.
The Girl Scouts did not immediately respond to a request for comment regarding the lawsuit but did address the underlying research in a blog post in February.
In that post, the Girl Scouts said their bakers and therefore their products comply with product-safety standards set by the Food and Drug Administration.
“Our bakers have confirmed that the levels reported do not pose a food safety concern to our customers,” the group said.
The scouting organization also said that glyphosate, used in agriculture in adherence to Environmental Protection Agency standards, can be found in trace amounts on all sorts of fruits, vegetables and baked goods. Similarly, due to the presence of metals in the soil, water and air, multiple food products including organic foods can contain trace amounts of those metals and other contaminants.
GSUSA said that the metals in question “are not added to our Girl Scout Cookies.”
