Coca-Cola recalled thousands of Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade cans after it was discovered that they were mislabeled. The recalled products were labeled as "zero sugar," when they contained full sugar.
The Food and Drug Administration issued the recall order in September for 13,152 cases, each with 12 cans of 12 ounces of lemonade. The agency didn't announce it publicly at the time.
The FDA's recall notice cited that the regular Minute Maid Lemonade cans were incorrectly packed into cartons labeled Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade.
The affected product contained the regular formula of lemonade with 40 grams of sugar and included cartons with the codes: FEB1725CNA or FEB1725CNB. The UPC code is 0 25000 12115 9. This mislabeled product was shipped to stores in Indiana, Kentucky and Ohio.
The recall was classified as a Class 2, meaning it involved "a health hazard situation where there is a remote probability of adverse health consequences from use of the product."
"In September, Coca-Cola Consolidated voluntarily recalled a limited quantity of Minute Maid Lemonade 12-ounce cans in parts of Kentucky, Indiana, and Ohio. No impacted product remains in the market, and all recall activities in those markets are complete," a spokesperson for Coca-Cola said in a statement cited by The Hill on Tuesday.
Customers who purchased the product were advised to discard it or return it to the point of purchase for a refund.
"No impacted product remains in the market," Coca-Cola said. "All recall activities in those markets are complete," USA Today reported.
Minute Maid Zero Sugar Lemonade contains five calories, 2g of carbs and 0g of sugar in a can. The regular Minute Maid Lemonade contains 150 calories, 42g of carbs and 40g of sugar.
In a separate issue, Coca-Cola announced in August that it will pay $6 billion in back taxes and interest to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) while appealing a previous U.S. Tax Court ruling. According to the Associated Press, the decision came in a long-running legal battle that dated back 17 years and involved taxes from the years 2007 to 2009.
The Atlanta-based beverage giant was contesting the IRS's reallocation of over $9 billion in income from its foreign affiliates to the U.S. parent company, arguing that the IRS changed its longstanding methodology without prior notice. Coca-Cola maintained that the IRS and the Tax Court misinterpreted the regulations.
