Perrier, sold as a French mineral water for more than a century, is actually a soda and therefore potentially taxable, a Pennsylvania court has ruled.
Perrier classification has come under fire since 2019, when thirsty patron Jennifer Montgomery was charged a 24-cent tax on a 16-ounce bottle of Perrier at a Seat convenience store in Pennsylvania. luck Previously reported.
Mr. Montgomery then filed two petitions with the Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s Board of Appeals seeking refunds on sales tax, since bottled water is not subject to tax in the United States.
Because water is necessary for survival, bottled water has traditionally been exempt from sales tax. But when manufacturers start adding sugar and other flavors and sweeteners, water goes from being a necessity to an option, and therefore water can be taxed.
Montgomery also had filed a class action lawsuit against Sheets in Allegheny County Common Pleas Court alleging the same issues, according to . court documents Submitted on April 23rd.
The Pennsylvania Department of Revenue’s Board of Appeals ruled in late 2019 that Perrier, as a carbonated water, falls under the category of “soft drink” and is subject to sales tax.
In the U.S., sales tax on bottled beverages is 1% to 2%, but some cities charge it by the ounce, further increasing the overall price of the beverage.
According to Fortune, Montgomery appealed the decision, arguing that Perrier is a “natural mineral water.”
But a Pennsylvania state court again ruled against Montgomery last month, stating that by definition, soft drinks are “powdered or liquid non-carbonated beverages, with or without carbonation, such as carbonated water, ginger ale, cola, and root beer.” It did not indicate that it was an alcoholic beverage. Flavored water, artificially carbonated water, orangeade, lemonade, fruit juice drinks containing less than 25%. ”
According to Perrier’s label, the drink is classified as a zero-calorie, sugar-free “carbonated mineral water” and comes from the south of France, “harvested from underground and bottled at the source.”
Perrier said: quality report According to Fortune, Montgomery argued in court that Perrier is “naturally carbonated” and that it cannot be considered a soft drink because it is “not artificially carbonated.”
However, the court did not accept that.
In an April ruling, a Pennsylvania state court noted that Perrier bottles are man-made.
“The term “carbonate” means “to combine with or inject carbon dioxide.” “Perrier is carbonated water because it is produced in a factory by mixing a certain amount of filtered or washed carbon dioxide with still water,” court documents state.
“Furthermore, this court found that the process to carbonate Perrier is the same process used to carbonate Coca-Cola and Pepsi.”
The U.S. Food and Drug Administration also said that Perrier is not naturally carbonated because the bubbles are pulled from the earth at the Vergèze springs in France and are not bottled intact.
Both water and carbon dioxide come from the spring, but they are separated at the source. According to the FDA, Perrier filters out impurities and then re-adds carbon dioxide at the bottling plant.
The Nestlé-owned brand also comes in flavors such as lemon, lime, grapefruit, orange, strawberry, and peach.
A Nestlé spokesperson told Fortune: “We are not involved in any litigation and do not provide information related to litigation. All Perrier products are labeled in accordance with applicable laws and regulations. ”
Historically, “soda” meant a beverage that was very high in sugar and could be linked to cancer, but recently, healthy carbonated drinks have taken over the “diet” beverage market. .
For example, Poppi and Olipop are loaded with prebiotics, probiotics, and other natural ingredients that have recently been added to the soda ingredient list.
