Starbucks, other coffee sellers ordered to warn California customers of carcinogens in coffee

LOS ANGELES -- A judge ruled that Starbucks and other coffee sellers in California must provide a cancer warning on their products for customers.

A nonprofit group sued several companies that sell coffee, including Starbucks, coffee distributors and retailers in 2010.

The lawsuit claimed those companies violated state law, which requires them to warn consumers about chemicals in the roasting process that may cause cancer. One of those chemicals is acrylamide, which is a carcinogen.

Attorneys for about 90 companies said the chemical is present in the process, but that it's at harmless levels and is outweighed by the benefits of drinking a cup of coffee.

Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Elihu Berle said in a proposed decision that Starbucks and other coffee companies failed to show the threat from that chemical compound was insignificant.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.