Starbucks intentionally underfills its lattes by 25 percent, saving the coffee giant millions while ripping-off customers at the same time, a putative class action states. 
 
 Latte drinkers Siera Strumlauf and Benjamin Robles claim that Starbucks baristas follow a standardized recipe when it comes to making lattes. According to the plaintiffs, latte-makers are instructed to fill a pitcher with steamed milk up to an etched “fill to” line, then pour shots of espresso into a serving cup, pour the steamed milk into the serving cup, top the latte with milk foam and leave 1/4 inch of free space at the top. 
 
 However, the Starbucks class action alleges that the “fill to” lines don’t measure up to the supposed 12, 16, and 20 fluid ounce cup sizes offered to customers. 
 
 “Tall Lattes are not 12 fluid ounces, Grande Lattes are not 16 fluid ounces, and Venti Lattes are not 20 fluid ounces,” the class action states. “Starbucks cheats purchasers by providing less fluid ounces in their Lattes than represented.” 
 
 The plaintiffs say Starbucks made a conscious decision to underfill its lattes in 2009 in order to save on the cost of milk, which is one of its most expensive ingredients. 
 
 By giving baristas a “fill to” line, there is no room for deviation making every latte short by several ounces, the plaintiffs claim. 
 
 “Moreover, Starbucks refuses to fill any hot beverage up to the brim of the cup. Thus, under no circumstances will Starbucks ever serve a Grande Latte that actually meets the fluid ounces represented on the menu,” the Starbucks lawsuit states. 
 
 Strumlauf says she visits her local Starbucks in San Francisco one or two times each week spending $3.95 on a grande-size (16 fl. oz.) latte. She claims that the representation on Starbucks’ menu informs customers that the grande-sized latte would in fact contain 16 ounces. Strumlauf states that had she known the coffee drink would be less than 16 ounces she would have either paid less for it or not bought it at all. 
 
 Robles claims he too was cheated when he purchased an underfilled 16 ounce, grande-sized Starbucks Latte. The plaintiff says he relied on the representation of ounces offered by Starbucks when deciding to make his purchase not knowing the product was misrepresented. 
 
 The Starbucks lawsuit alleges that by underfilling lattes, the coffee company is in breach of express and implied warranties as well as liable for unjust enrichment. 
 
 If the class action lawsuit is approved, it will be open to all U.S. Class Members who purchased a Starbucks Latte. The plaintiffs also seek to represent a subclass of California residents who bought a latte from Starbucks. 
 
 Strumlauf and Robles are represented by L. Timothy Fisher, Julia A. Luster and Scott A. Bursor of Bursor & Fisher PA, and Gerald Healy and John Hafemann of Military Justice Attorneys PLLC. 
 
 The Starbucks Underfilled Latte Class Action Lawsuit is Siera Strumlauf, et al. v. Starbucks Corp., Case No. 3:16-cv-01306, in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California. 
 
 UPDATE: On April 25, 2016, plaintiffs urged a California federal judge not to dismiss a class action lawsuit that accuses Starbucks Corp. of uniformly underfilling its lattes by 25 percent. 
 
 UPDATE 2: On May 26, 2016, Starbucks filed a motion with the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation to transfer all underfilled drinks class action lawsuits to Washington, arguing that it would be more convenient for depositions. 
 
 UPDATE 3: On June 17, 2016, this Starbucks class action lawsuit over underfilled lattes will continue, but with fewer claims and limitations on the available relief. 
 
 UPDATE 4: On Aug. 5, 2016, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation ruled that the class action lawsuits alleging Starbucks intentionally underfills lattes and other coffee drinks will not be merged into one centralized case. 
 
 UPDATE 5: On Oct. 17, 2017, the plaintiffs argued that the coffee company’s motion to dismiss the Starbucks class action lawsuit is premature because it was filed during the discovery phase, in which the plaintiffs are attempting to learn the standard recipe formulations for Starbucks mochas and lattes. 
 
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 View all: Class Action Lawsuit and Settlement News, Consumer Products ||||| Coffee giant is accused of overcharging customers by serving lattes that are 25% too small, based on a recipe it adopted in 2009 to save money on milk 
 
 A federal judge said two Starbucks customers may pursue a lawsuit accusing the coffee chain of cheating patrons by underfilling lattes. 
 
 
 
 In a decision on Friday, US district judge Thelton Henderson in San Francisco said the California plaintiffs may seek damages for fraud and false advertising from Starbucks Corp in their proposed nationwide class action. 
 
 According to the lawsuit Starbucks is skimping on one of a latte’s main ingredients: milk. 
 
 “A latte is a coffee drink made with espresso and steamed milk,” the lawsuit claims, explaining that caffè latte is Italian for “milk coffee”. “Traditionally, a latte is created by mixing steamed milk and espresso, which is then topped with a thin layer of milk foam.” 
 
 Woman sues Starbucks over ice-to-coffee ratio in cold drinks Read more 
 
 The coffee giant was accused of overcharging customers by systematically serving lattes that are 25% too small, based on a recipe it adopted in 2009 to save money on milk. 
 
 The two plaintiffs, Siera Strumlauf of San Francisco and Benjamin Robles of Carlsbad, said Starbucks requires baristas to use pitchers for heating milk with etched “fill to” lines that are too low, and to leave a 1/4 inch of free space in drink cups. 
 
 “By underfilling its lattes, thereby shortchanging its customers, Starbucks has saved countless millions of dollars in the cost of goods sold and was unjustly enriched by taking payment for more product than it delivers,” the suit reads. 
 
 The plaintiffs argued that this policy short-changes customers because Starbucks’ cups for tall, grande and venti lattes hold exactly 12, 16 and 20 ounces. Those measurements are advertised on the menu boards in the stores, but when served to customers the lattes do not actually contain that much fluid, they argued. 
 
 “This is not a case where the alleged deception is simply implausible as a matter of law,” Henderson wrote. “The court finds it probable that a significant portion of the latte-consuming public could believe that a ‘Grande’ contains 16 ounces of fluid.” 
 
 Henderson did not rule on the case’s merits. He dismissed three of the plaintiffs’ eight claims against Seattle-based Starbucks, as well as their request for injunctive relief. 
 
 When the lawsuit was first filed, Jeff Rossen, a reporter for the Today Show, purchased Starbucks lattes at six different New York locations to find out how many fluid ounces customers were “really getting”. None of his six lattes contained 16 ounces as advertised – one contained less than 12 ounces after the foam settled. 
 
 “In the food science community, as well as in the weights and measures community, foam is not measured on a volumetric basis,” the plaintiffs argued in their suit. 
 
 At the time, Starbucks called Rossen’s experiment “unscientific”. 
 
 A Starbucks spokesman, Reggie Borges, on Monday said the company believes the lawsuit is without merit and is prepared to defend itself against the remaining claims. He also said that if a customer is not satisfied with how a beverage is prepared, “we will gladly remake it”. 
 
 Lawyers for the plaintiffs did not immediately respond on Monday to requests for comment. 
 
 In May, another lawsuit was brought against Starbucks – this time by a Chicago woman who claimed that she was served too much ice and too little caffeine in her Starbucks’ cold beverages. 
 
 According to Starbucks, this lawsuit was also without merit. 
 
 “Our customers understand and expect that ice is an essential component of any ‘iced’ beverage. If a customer is not satisfied with their beverage preparation, we will gladly remake it,” the company said in a statement. 
 
 Reuters contributed to this report.
– Think your Starbucks lattes are light on the milk? Well, get this: Not only are two Starbucks customers suing over an alleged lack of milk in the coffee drinks, a judge on Friday allowed their proposed class-action suit to proceed, Reuters reports. The plaintiffs, California residents Siera Strumlauf and Benjamin Robles, claim Starbucks cheats customers by selling lattes that are 25% smaller than advertised. The suit says baristas are given pitchers for heating milk that have purposely low "fill to" lines, with lattes then topped with foam and left 1/4 inch short. The plaintiffs say this conflicts with Starbucks' promise that tall, grande, and venti lattes contain 12, 16, and 20 ounces, respectively. "The court finds it probable that a significant portion of the latte-consuming public could believe that a 'Grande' contains 16 ounces of fluid," wrote US District Judge Thelton Henderson is his decision. The suit—which Top Class Actions says will be open to "all US Class Members who purchased a Starbucks Latte"—further claims that the alleged lack of milk has saved Starbucks "countless millions of dollars," as Eater reported in March. For its part, Starbucks says it's ready to fight the accusations in court. When the lawsuit was filed earlier this year, Today Show reporter Jeff Rossen went out and bought six lattes that all turned out to be underfilled—at least once the foam had settled, the Guardian recalls. (One woman sued Starbucks for $5 million over the ice in its drinks.)