The David Protein Bar Controversy, And What It Should Teach You About Reading Food Labels

A class action lawsuit alleges that the popular protein bar brand contains nearly double the calories and four times the fat listed on their label, and the internet has had a field day.

What the Lawsuit Actually Claims

The lawsuit again David Protein bars, filed in January 2026 in New York federal court, alleges that Linus Technologies Inc. (the company behind David Bars) has been systematically mislabeling its products. The plaintiffs hired an accredited laboratory to independently test multiple David Bar flavors, and their results were striking: the bars reportedly contain between 268 and 275 calories per serving, compared to the 150 calories advertised. Fat content came in at 11 to 13.5 grams per serving versus the 2 grams on the label, a discrepancy of up to 400%.

For a product whose entire value proposition is being a low-calorie, high-protein bar, those are not minor rounding errors. That’s a fundamentally different macronutrient profile than what consumers are being sold.

The Company’s Defense: EPG and FDA Labeling Rules

Here’s where it gets genuinely interesting from a scientific standpoint, and where the founder’s response deserves a fair hearing.

David Bars contain EPG (esterified propoxylated glycerol,) a chemically engineered fat substitute. EPG is designed to behave like fat in food (providing texture, mouthfeel, and palatability) but is resistant to digestive enzymes, meaning the body absorbs very little of it. The FDA has recognized that EPG contributes only about 0.7 kcal per gram, compared to 9 kcal per gram for conventional dietary fat. Because of FDA labeling rules, a company can legitimately list far fewer fat grams and calories for this ingredient.

Here’s where it get s a bit complicated:

The founder’s position is that the lab tests used by the plaintiffs measured combustion energy (essentially burning the bar and measuring heat output), not metabolizable energy. He argues that this method of bomb calorimetry is simply the wrong test for products containing EPG, and that David Bars are fully compliant with FDA regulations when the correct methodology is applied.

This defense is not frivolous. The FDA does permit multiple calorie calculation methods, and there is established scientific consensus that standard 4-4-9 caloric values don’t apply to novel fat substitutes. The company claims it worked with regulators in developing its labeling approach.

My Clinical Take: Technically Legal Doesn’t Mean Healthy

Here’s the honest truth: both things can be simultaneously true. David’s labeling may be technically compliant with FDA rules and deeply confusing to the average consumer.

The bigger problem lies in food marketing, as this industry has become extraordinarily sophisticated at leveraging novel ingredients, regulatory gray zones, and aspirational marketing to create products that seem transformative to the consumer.

Ultimately, it’s important to remember this point: a food label is a legal document first, and a nutritional communication tool second.

So is EPG actually bad for you?

The honest answer is I’m not sure. EPG has received FDA status of GRAS (Generally Recognized As Safe), and there have been studies in rats and pigs suggesting no toxicity at typical dietary doses.

But some human trials have reported more frequent GI symptoms (loose stools) at higher ingested amounts. Since EPG is non-absorbable, it passes through the gut largely intact, and may carry fat-soluble vitamins out with it, reducing absorption of these critical nutrients.

The real issue isn’t toxicity, though - it’s that EPG is a relatively novel ingredient with no robust long-term human data. For someone eating a protein bar containing it occasionally, it probably has no meaningful concern. For someone using it as a daily staple, they’re consuming more EPG more frequently that any of the safety studies have evaluated.

As with all engineered food ingredients, my default is the same: whole foods don’t require a GRAS filing. We know, unequivocally, the long term gut safety of whole foods, so that should always be your go-to source for dietary staples.