Don't Believe This Dangerous Myth About Tim Hortons' Coffee

If America runs on Dunkin, then Canada runs on Tim Hortons. The Toronto-based coffee chain has been keeping our neighbors to the north well-fueled since it first opened its doors in 1964 and now has nearly 4,300 locations across the country (via ScrapeHero). Tim Hortons recently revealed its most popular menu items of 2020. Along with the iconic TimBits (bite-sized hunks of fried dough) and fluffy donuts, the Double-Double and classic coffee both ranked high on the list. 

With over 2 million cups of coffee sold every single day (per Newswire Canada), Tim Hortons is famous for its deliciously bold brew, which is made with 100 percent Arabica beans using the same original recipe for over 50 years. It's almost too good to be true. In fact, Canadians are so obsessed with the red cups of java that some people claim to be "addicted" to it. And thus, a dangerous yet completely untrue rumor about Tim Hortons coffee was born.

Because Tim Hortons coffee is just that good, people started accusing the chain of adding things to the brew that were making it literally addicting. The rumors ranged from the believable (like that the coffee was super caffeinated) to outrageous (one even claimed that Tim's was lacing the coffee with nicotine and MSG). The Torontoist did some digging, however, and found that the rumors are just that: rumors — they're absolutely not true. The paper interviewed the chain's public relations manager, Michelle Robichaud, who said, "There is in fact nothing added to our coffee. We believe that our guests are addicted to consistency."

To further debunk the myth, Snopes.com explains that the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) oversees all food and drink sold in Canada (similar to the FDA in the U.S.). It would never allow any illegal or harmful additives to be mixed into the coffee, so you can sip your cuppa stress-free.