There is no Fairlife microplastics lawsuit on file. Despite widespread searches for one, no class action or other publicly identified case accuses Fairlife of contaminating its products with microplastics or plastic chemicals. The interest traces back to a January 2024 Consumer Reports study that found Fairlife’s Core Power High Protein Chocolate Milk Shake contained some of the highest phthalate levels among 85 foods tested — a finding that has not, as of mid-2026, produced litigation against the company.
What Consumer Reports Found in Core Power
Consumer Reports tested 85 grocery and fast food products for phthalates and bisphenols, two families of synthetic chemicals used to make plastics flexible or durable. Phthalates turned up in 84 of the 85 products, and bisphenols in 79 percent of samples.1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food
Fairlife’s Core Power High Protein Chocolate Milk Shake registered 20,452 nanograms of total phthalates per serving in the published data, higher than SlimFast shakes (16,916 nanograms), Yoplait yogurt (10,948 nanograms), and Tuscan Dairy Farms whole milk (10,932 nanograms).1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food In a follow-up letter, Consumer Reports cited a figure of 24,928 nanograms of plasticizers per serving and described the product as containing “among the highest levels of phthalates” of anything tested.2Consumer Reports Advocacy. Letter to Fairlife on Plastic Chemicals in Core Power
Why Phthalates Matter
Phthalates are endocrine disruptors, which means they interfere with the body’s hormonal systems. Research has linked exposure to increased risk of birth defects, diabetes, obesity, heart disease, certain cancers, neurological harm, and infertility.2Consumer Reports Advocacy. Letter to Fairlife on Plastic Chemicals in Core Power The effects appear cumulative, so steady low-level exposure over time can compound the risk.3Food Safety Magazine. High Levels of Toxic Plasticizers, Phthalates, Bisphenols Found in Nearly All Foods in US
Tunde Akinleye, the Consumer Reports scientist who ran the testing, put it this way: “The more we learn about these chemicals, including how widespread they are, the more it seems clear that they can harm us even at very low levels.”4Scripps News. Forever Chemicals Found in Chipotle, Annie’s, Fairlife and More Foods
How the Chemicals Get Into Food
Packaging is not the whole story. Consumer Reports found phthalate contamination in cans, pouches, plastic bottles, and foil alike, with no clear correlation to container type. That points to contamination that happens well before food reaches a store shelf.1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food4Scripps News. Forever Chemicals Found in Chipotle, Annie’s, Fairlife and More Foods5Boise State Public Radio. Consumer Reports Plastic Eat Body Phthalates
Fairlife’s Response
On February 22, 2024, Consumer Reports sent a formal letter to Fairlife’s Chicago headquarters urging the company “to protect consumers from high levels of potentially hazardous plastic chemicals” in Core Power. The letter walked through the test results and the research on phthalate health effects, and noted that tolerable daily intake levels set by regulators do not reflect current scientific understanding.6Consumer Reports Advocacy. CR Letter to Fairlife on Plastic Chemicals in Its Core Power High Protein Chocolate Milk Shake Product2Consumer Reports Advocacy. Letter to Fairlife on Plastic Chemicals in Core Power
Fairlife did not respond to Consumer Reports’ requests for comment about the findings, and no public response or corrective action from the company has been reported.1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food
Related Lawsuits Against Other Food Brands
Phthalate and microplastic litigation against food companies is not hypothetical, even if Fairlife has not been a target. In 2021, General Mills was hit with a proposed class action alleging it failed to disclose phthalates in Annie’s macaroni and cheese, another brand flagged in the same Consumer Reports study.7Bloomberg Law. General Mills Sued Over Phthalates in Annie’s Mac and Cheese Since early 2024, multiple class actions have also been filed against bottled water companies alleging their products contain microplastics while being marketed as “natural.”1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food The legal environment around plastic chemicals in food is active and expanding.
Where the FDA Stands
Federal oversight is part of why this pressure is playing out through consumer advocacy and litigation rather than regulation. In May 2022, the FDA revoked authorization for 23 phthalates and two other plasticizers used in food contact materials, but the agency did so because industry had already stopped using them, not because it found them unsafe.8U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Limits Use of Certain Phthalates in Food Packaging Nine phthalates remain authorized for food contact use, and the FDA is currently seeking safety and exposure data on eight of them.9U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Phthalates in Food Packaging and Food Contact Applications
A coalition including Consumer Reports, the Environmental Defense Fund, and the Center for Food Safety petitioned the FDA in March 2016 to ban phthalates from food contact uses entirely. The FDA denied that petition in May 2022 and denied a reconsideration request in July 2023, stating the petitioners had not proven the chemicals unsafe.10Consumer Reports. FDA Denies Petition to Ban All Phthalates in Food Packaging11U.S. Food and Drug Administration. FDA Responds to Petition on Phthalates in Food Packaging and Food Contact Applications Advocates argue existing thresholds are outdated and fail to account for cumulative exposure across multiple foods.1Consumer Reports. The Plastic Chemicals Hiding in Your Food
Fairlife’s Other Active Litigation
Fairlife does face lawsuits, but not over plastic chemicals. A 2022 multidistrict settlement resolved class actions alleging the company deceived consumers with humane-treatment marketing after undercover video showed animal abuse at supplier Fair Oaks Farm; the case settled for $21 million with third-party farm audits and animal handling training as injunctive relief.12Truth in Advertising. Fairlife Milk13DiCello Levitt. Fairlife and Deceptive Animal Welfare Claims
A newer case, Bhotiwihok v. Fairlife, LLC, was filed in February 2025 in the Central District of California. It challenges Fairlife’s animal welfare branding again and separately alleges the plastic bottles are not actually recyclable despite “Recycle Me” labeling. In a February 2026 ruling, Judge Otis Wright II allowed the branding claims to proceed and dismissed the recyclability claims under a California safe harbor provision effective through October 2026.14Truth in Advertising. Bhotiwihok v. Fairlife Feb 2026 Dismissal Order15Courthouse News Service. Fairlife Must Face Consumers’ Claim That Its Logo Is Misleading Neither case involves claims about microplastics or phthalate contamination.