PepsiCo Wins Dismissal Of New York's Lawsuit Over Plastics Pollution

PepsiCo won the dismissal of New York's lawsuit accusing the beverage and snack-food company of polluting the environment with single-use plastic packaging, as the judge criticized state Attorney General Letitia James for bringing the case, Jonathan Stempel, Allison Lampert, and Nate Raymond reported for Reuters.

James sued PepsiCo and its Frito-Lay unit last November, seeking to hold them liable for endangering Buffalo's water supply by generating 17% of the plastic waste found in and near the Buffalo River. I Photo: PepsiCo, Inc.

Justice Emilio Colaiacovo of the State Supreme Court in Buffalo said that James failed to show that PepsiCo created a public nuisance or should have warned consumers about the health and environmental risks of plastics in more than 100 of its brands.

James sued PepsiCo and its Frito-Lay unit last November, seeking to hold them liable for endangering Buffalo's water supply by generating 17% of the plastic waste found in and near the Buffalo River.

She also claimed the defendants misled the public about their efforts to combat plastics pollution.

However, the judge ruled that it would "run contrary to every norm of established jurisprudence" to punish PepsiCo, as it was individuals, not the company, who disregarded anti-littering laws.

He also noted that James, a Democrat, ignored a 2003 appeals court ruling that refused to hold Sturm Ruger liable when criminals used its handguns, warning that such a ruling could open the door to a flood of public nuisance lawsuits. James' predecessor, Eliot Spitzer, brought that case.