A screenshot showing Driscoll’s raspberries and blackberries marked as restocking on Freshippo’s platfor

Driscoll’s products are unsearchable at some Chinese supermarket chains or marked as restocking, following overseas test results alleging the berries contain toxic PFAS chemicals, the Shandian News of Shandong Radio and Television Station reported.

The US berry firm faces a class-action lawsuit filed by consumers, after eight types of PFAS were detected in its strawberries. PFAS, dubbed “forever chemicals”, are hard to degrade and prone to accumulating inside human bodies, with some PFAS compounds classified as carcinogenic by the World Health Organization, according to the report.

Items from the brand are unavailable for purchase at Olé Supermarket and Yonghui Superstores, the Global Times noticed.

A Sam’s Club representative told the Global Times on Tuesday that none of the brand’s products could be retrieved via its system. 

Searches on Freshippo’s platform show blueberries from the brand remain in stock, whereas its raspberries and blackberries are labeled as restocking and set to go on sale at 21:30 pm. At Costco, the brand’s raspberries, blackberries and strawberries are all marked as restocking, the Global Times noticed.

Berry products from the brand remain available via its official Tmall flagship store. A customer service representative told the Global Times that the berries sold in China are mainly sourced from southwest China's Yunnan Province. "We comply with Chinese laws and regulations throughout cultivation and sales. Our products meet all relevant standards and certification requirements," the representative said.

The hashtag "Carcinogens detected in US berry brand Driscoll’s" has gone viral on Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo. As of noon Tuesday, the topic has amassed over 6.78 million views.

Many Chinese netizens voiced concerns about product safety on Sina Weibo. One netizen said that the reports made her reluctant to buy Driscoll’s fruits. Others called for official test data to verify the safety of the berries.

Driscoll’s is facing a consumer fraud class-action lawsuit alleging that the Californian fruit company’s strawberries contain “forever chemicals,” the New York Post reported.

The lawsuit hinges on a laboratory report that tested two boxes of Driscoll’s strawberries and found that the produce contained eight PFAS “forever chemicals,” meaning they are extremely persistent and highly toxic, the laboratory said in its report.

The consumer fraud lawsuit is largely based on a bombshell whistleblower complaint filed in Ventura County Superior Court last month by David Harada, Driscoll’s former manager of food safety and regulatory compliance for the US and Canada, according to the New York Post.

He claimed that he was wrongfully terminated after warning executives that growers were violating state, federal, and international pesticide limits.

Global Times