Full Breakdown
Texas Attorney General Sues Gerber Over Toxic Metals in Baby Food
By Drooid · · How we work
Lawsuit Details
Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton filed a 68-page complaint in Collin County, Texas, accusing Gerber Products Co. and its parent Nestlé USA of violating the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. The suit alleges that 67 batches of Gerber’s rice flour contain arsenic levels more than nine times the federal limit for bottled drinking water and that the products also exceed limits for lead and cadmium. Paxton’s office claims the company “rarely tested for mercury” and relied on ingredient testing rather than testing finished products, thereby misleading parents about safety.
Allegations and Evidence
The complaint cites internal testing that found:
- Rice samples with over 90 parts per billion (ppb) inorganic arsenic (? 9 × the federal guideline).
- Sweet-potato samples with up to 48 ppb lead (? 9 × the guideline).
- Carrot samples with up to 87 ppb cadmium (? 17 × the guideline).
The lawsuit states that Gerber’s marketing promised “safe, pure, and rigorously tested” foods while the QR codes added to jars in 2025—intended to comply with California law—link to heavy-metal reports that the suit says the company did not act upon.
Company Response
Gerber, in a written statement to an Austin ABC-News affiliate, contended that its products meet Food and Drug Administration limits for heavy metals. The company added that while complete elimination of metals is impossible, it works to reduce them through ingredient sourcing, supplier requirements, and testing of both ingredients and finished goods.
Political Context
The lawsuit was announced weeks before the 2026 Texas Senate race, in which Paxton is the Republican nominee facing Democratic challenger James Talarico. Campaign observers note that the filing adds a consumer-safety dimension to an already competitive election.
Verbatim Quotes
- “Gerber promised parents its food was safe and rigorously tested. Its own tests showed toxic metals in the food. When a company makes promises about what parents feed their babies, I will hold it accountable to ensure those promises are kept,” — General Ken Paxton, texas attorney — General Ken Paxton, Texas Attorney General