Fresh Faces Lawsuit Over “Sugar” Lip Balms That Allegedly Contain No Sugar

Case Overview: Class action lawsuit says Fresh falsely markets its “Sugar” lip products as containing real sugar, misleading shoppers.

Consumers Affected: U.S. buyers of Fresh Sugar lip balms and treatments marketed as sugar-infused.

Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California

Fresh, a well-known beauty brand sold at Sephora, Ulta and Macy’s, is facing a legal action from consumers who claim the company falsely advertised dozens of its lip products as containing “fresh sugar” when they allegedly do not.

The proposed class action lawsuit accuses Fresh of misleading shoppers through prominent front-label language and marketing that emphasizes sugar as a key ingredient.

Words like “Sugar,” phrases such as “powered by sugar” and “infused with sugar,” and images of crystallized sugar led shoppers to believe the products contained real sugar, an ingredient valued in lip care for exfoliation, hydration and skin renewal, the lawsuit claims. 

Despite that, the lawsuit asserts the products contain no sugar at all.

Lawsuit Claims “Sugar” Branding Misled Buyers Nationwide

California Fresh customers Helena Burke and Breeana Cooper filed the lawsuit saying they relied on the company’s labeling and marketing when purchasing lip balms and treatments. 

Burke, who lives in San Francisco, says she bought Fresh Sugar Watermelon Hydrating Lip Balm and Fresh Sugar Tinted Lip Balm in 2024 and 2025 from a Macy’s store. She claims she believed the products contained real sugar based on the front label and prior advertising she had seen in stores and online, and didn’t check the back label because the sugar messaging was so clear. 

Cooper, who lives in Murrieta, California, says she purchased Fresh Sugar Lip Treatment Lip Balm from a Sephora store in Anaheim in 2022 under the same assumption. Both women say they would not have bought the products, or would have paid significantly less, if they’d known sugar was not actually included.

Consumers Argue They Paid Premium Prices For False Ingredient Claims

Burke and Cooper say 27 Fresh lip balms and treatments sold nationwide were falsely marketed as having sugar in them.

Fresh’s marketing went beyond a single label and amounted to a coordinated campaign reinforcing the idea that sugar was a core ingredient, they argue, and say online descriptions highlighted sugar’s benefits, claimed the products were powered by sugar from sugar cane and beet root, and paired those claims with imagery of sugar crystals.

The messaging is especially misleading because sugar is commonly used in lip care products and is widely known for its humectant and exfoliating properties, the women argue. Competing brands, the lawsuit notes, sell similar products that do contain real sugar making consumers’ expectations even more reasonable.

According to the lawsuit, Fresh could have included sugar in the products but instead chose to market around it, allegedly allowing the company to charge premium prices consumers would not have paid if they knew the truth.

Beauty Industry Faces Surge Of Ingredient Label Lawsuits

Fresh is not alone in facing legal action over its cosmetic products. Other personal care companies are facing lawsuits over ingredient claims, including Unilever over Vaseline Baby Healing Jelly, Beiersdorf over Aquaphor baby products, and soaps and body washes marketed for sensitive skin but accused of containing irritants.

RoC Skincare is also facing legal action from consumers for allegedly overstating benefits of its retinol cleanser. 

In their lawsuit against Fresh, the women want to represent all U.S. residents who purchased the challenged Fresh products. They are suing for alleged violations of consumer protection laws and breach of warranty, and are seeking damages, restitution, and reimbursement of fees and costs arguing that shoppers paid extra for an ingredient that was never actually there.

Case Details

• Lawsuit: Burke, et al. v. Fresh, Inc.
• Case No.: 3:25-cv-10520
• Court: U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California 

Plaintiffs' Attorneys

• Joseph Hakakian, Benjamin Heikali, Ruhandy Glezakos, and Joshua Nassir (Treehouse Law, LLP)

Have you tried Fresh’s “Sugar” lip line? Tell us if you thought the products actually contained sugar.