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A popular Starbucks coffee variety allegedly contains undeclared potassium — potentially harming clueless customers who believe they’re chugging pure java, The Post has learned.
A complaint filed late last month with the North Carolina Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Division claims Starbucks Dark French Roast Coffee “significantly exceeds” levels of the essential nutrient found in other unadulterated beans sold on supermarket and retail shelves.
Independent laboratory testing found 13% more potassium in Starbucks’ dark roast compared to its house blend as well as Dunkin’ Donuts’ and Lavazza’s dark roast varieties, according to the complaint.
“These significant variances … can only be explained by the purposeful addition of potassium to the coffee during Starbucks’ production process,” the complaint states.
Supplemental potassium produces a “less-bitter” cup with lower acidity, but contradicts Starbucks’ label claiming to be “100% Arabica coffee,” according to the filing.
Some experts contacted by The Post, meanwhile, said they were surprised by the findings.
“This is strange and hard to believe,” said Taka Shibamoto, a distinguished emeritus professor at the UC Davis Coffee Center, which bills itself as the first academic facility entirely dedicated to studying coffee. “A company like Starbucks must know the regulations.”
If the complaint is accurate, the additional potassium was most likely added “for the sake of taste” or to lower the coffee’s acidity, Shibamoto said.
The complaint against Starbucks was filed by a North Carolina-based company, Puroast, which sells high-antioxidant coffee claiming to be 70% less acidic than other brands. It seeks a cease-and-desist order to stop the sale and distribution of the allegedly “mislabeled” Starbucks coffee product throughout the state.
Starbucks’ failure to disclose the alleged additive could lead to adverse health conditions such as hyperkalemia — or elevated levels of potassium in the blood that can in extreme cases cause heart attacks, the complaint claims.
High potassium levels could also be problematic for anyone with kidney disease, as the organs find it hard to remove excess amounts of the element from the bloodstream, according to the American Kidney Fund.
Attorney David Puryear, who represents Puroast, said there’s no reasonable explanation for Starbucks Dark French Roast’s allegedly sky-high potassium levels, and he did not think the “significant addition” was unintentional.
“It’s there,” he said. “It has the consequence of lowering the acidity of the brewed product.”
Any ingredient added to food during production must be declared, especially those that change products fundamentally or pack potential health risks, Puryear said.
“Consumers who are buying it with the belief that there’s no additives should be concerned,” he claimed.
The complaint falls under agricultural statutes, meaning it would’ve been forwarded to the state Department of Agriculture, according to a spokeswoman for North Carolina Department of Justice’s Consumer Protection Division. A message seeking comment from the former agency was not immediately returned.
Potassium is found naturally in many foods, including leafy greens, beans, nuts and starchy vegetables. An 8-ounce cup of black coffee contains 116 milligrams of potassium, according to the National Kidney Foundation.
That qualifies java as a “low potassium” food, but many drinkers quaff more than one cup per day. Anyone who downs three to four servings daily could see their potassium rise to problematic levels, the organization warns.
Starbucks, meanwhile, dismissed Puroast’s claim as groundless while insisting its Dark French Roast fully complies with US Food and Drug Administration labeling requirements.
“We are aware of the complaint Puroast has filed with the North Carolina Consumer Protection Division and believe it is without merit,” a company spokesperson told The Post in a statement. “We do not add potassium to Starbucks Dark French Roast coffee.”
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