Photo: Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for The Vitamin Shoppe
David’s protein bars, launched in 2024, quickly gained a following among fitness enthusiasts and those tracking their macros, with labels proudly stating they contain 150 calories and 28 grams of protein. However, a class-action lawsuit filed earlier this year raises concerns about these claims being too good to be true. The complaint, which was featured on a class-action news site, alleges that tests on the bars found they contain approximately 83% more calories and 400% more fat than advertised.
The lawsuit accuses the company of deceiving consumers and violating FDA standards. According to the complaint, an “accredited laboratory recognized by the FDA” tested multiple flavors of the bars and found that each one contained between 263 and 275 calories, far exceeding the 150 calories stated on the label. Furthermore, the actual fat content ranged from 11.76 to 13.52 grams, significantly higher than the listed figure of just 2 to 2.5 grams.
In January, shortly after the lawsuit was filed, co-founder Peter Rahal defended the accuracy of the product’s nutritional labeling in an interview with Vanity Fair. He asserted, “We stand behind the accuracy of our product labeling, which complies with FDA requirements for measuring and reporting nutritional content.” Rahal argued that the lawsuit misinterpreted how the FDA calculates calories for EPG, a key ingredient in their bars. EPG, or esterified propoxylated glycerol, is a fat substitute developed by Epogee, a company acquired by David last year.
This isn’t the first instance of legal trouble for David due to its use of EPG. In May, three former clients of Epogee accused Rahal of antitrust violations related to David’s exclusive access to EPG. In response to the allegations, David reportedly claimed that the former clients were responsible for not securing their own long-term contracts with Epogee. Despite these challenges, the popularity of David’s trendy protein bars appears unaffected, with Rahal recently informing The New Consumer of plans to introduce additional products this year, which he hints will also tout remarkably low calorie and fat counts.
The Cut has reached out to representatives for the David brand and will update this post if we hear back.
