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Local Woman Sues Juice Maker For Purity Claims

VACAVILLE (CBS13) - A freshly-squeezed lawsuit is calling into question just how fresh Tropicana orange juice really is.

This is a new one. We're going to call this a fruit suit. This lawsuit is certainly a talker as a Vacaville woman is taking on juice giant Tropicana.

The label is as clear as day on the front of the Tropicana bottle: 100% pure and natural, but how much thought do we all give, to what's actually going into our glass each morning?

"It's orange juice; I don't expect rocket science," said Dave Garrison a shopper.

Like Garrison, if you answered, "not much" you're not alone.

Then there's the other extreme. Angelena Lewis from Vacaville filed a 25-page lawsuit claiming Tropicana is using false advertising because their juice is not 100% pure and natural.

"Some people just want to sue for anything whether it be handicap parking or the weather," said Bill Abeling, a shopper.

The federal lawsuit claims Tropicana orange juice is processed and flavored in order to make it last longer on store shelves. Despite the fact the bottle does say it's pasteurized, Lewis claims she would not have made the purchase if the bottle was labeled correctly.

But shoppers we talked to were sour to the idea of a lawsuit.

"You want the real orange juice, well squeeze your own. No I'm sorry, then you know it would be 100%," said Carnelia Smith, a shopper.

But lewis isn't alone in this juice jostle. Some OJ enthusiasts think she might be on to something.

"We want to buy what the product says it's selling. If it's 100% we want it, if it's not, we don't," said Joanna Tholstrum, a shopper.

And while this juice suit has outsiders talking, the involved parties aren't talking right now. We've gotten no responses yet from the attorney for Lewis or from Tropicana.

Tropicana's website says their Pure Premium brand has 16 fresh-picked oranges in each 59-ounce container.

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