Unreported / Non-Citable
Background
Nic’s Beverages, LLC alleged that Waco Bottling LLC agreed to produce, bottle, cool, store, and arrange transportation for its CBD-infused cold-brew coffee. The product was to be maintained at 35–40 degrees. Waco Bottling stored the bottles in a rented refrigerated truck on its property and arranged for third-party trucking companies to transport them to US Cold Storage.
Receipts showed that the two transportation trucks arrived at US Cold Storage with ambient temperatures of 69 and 80 degrees. Nic’s Beverages claimed that its product had been damaged by heat and sought recovery for two shipments totaling 80,000 pounds, along with lost profits, shipping and storage costs, and lost business opportunities. Waco Bottling moved for no-evidence summary judgment on the breach-of-contract and negligence claims, and the trial court granted the motion.
The Court’s Holding
The Texas Tenth Court of Appeals affirmed. Viewing the evidence in Nic’s Beverages’ favor, the court held that the company presented no evidence that the Cold Brew itself exceeded the required temperature range or suffered heat shock. No one tested, tasted, or checked the bottles’ temperature upon arrival, and the court declined to infer the product’s temperature solely from the trucks’ ambient temperatures.
The court also held that Nic’s Beverages failed to produce more than a scintilla of evidence connecting any act or omission by Waco Bottling to the alleged loss. Testimony that an employee kicked the storage truck’s fuel tank and refilled it because it sounded empty did not establish that the truck ran out of fuel, that its refrigeration failed, or that the bottles overheated while under Waco Bottling’s control. Because the evidence did not raise a fact issue on breach and resulting damage, the trial court properly entered no-evidence summary judgment on both claims.
Key Takeaways
- Ambient temperature readings from transport trucks did not establish the temperature or condition of the bottled product inside them.
- Speculation that a refrigerated storage truck may have run out of fuel was not evidence that refrigeration failed or caused the product to overheat.
- A no-evidence summary judgment may be affirmed when the plaintiff fails to raise a fact issue on even one essential element of its claim.
Why It Matters
The decision underscores that Texas plaintiffs opposing a no-evidence summary judgment must produce evidence tying the defendant’s conduct to an actual, compensable injury. Suspicion based on surrounding circumstances is insufficient when no testing or other proof establishes that the product was damaged or identifies the defendant’s conduct as the cause.