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FUCKING WIN OF THE WEEK!
WASHINGTON — Alcohol and caffeine will no longer mix in a popular drink that has won the wrath of state and federal regulators.
Phusion Projects late Tuesday announced it would reformulate its products to remove caffeine, guarana and taurine nationwide.
"Going forward, Phusion will produce only non-caffeinated versions of Four Loko," company co-founders Chris Hunter, Jeff Wright and Jaisen Freeman said in a joint statement.
The three maintained that the combination of alcohol and caffeine is safe.
"If it were unsafe, popular drinks like rum and colas or Irish coffees that have been consumed safely and responsibly for years would face the same scrutiny that our products have recently faced," they said.
Phusion Project's products were approved by the Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, they said.
Their announcement came as U.S. regulators planned to crack down on companies selling alcoholic beverages that include a jolt of caffeine amid pressure from lawmakers, states and consumer groups that contend the drinks are dangerous.
Two U.S. agencies, the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission, are expected to warn manufacturers that adding caffeine to beer and other alcoholic drinks is unsafe and will caution them against marketing such beverages, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday.
Doing so "will effectively ban products from the market," Schumer said in a statement. He did not say when the agencies would act, and representatives for the FDA and the FTC had no comment.
Schumer and other U.S. lawmakers, as well as attorneys general in states such as Connecticut, have lobbied heavily for some kind of federal regulatory action following reports of young adults across the U.S. passing out or being hospitalized after consuming the so-called alcohol energy drinks.
Consumer advocates have also been urging tougher action against the drinks, sold mostly by privately held companies under the brands Four Loko, Joose and others. The cheap, fruit flavored drinks are growing in popularity, especially among college students, they say.
"Compounded with its health risks, beverages like Four Loko pose a unique danger because they target young people," Schumer said, noting that such drinks can contain the caffeine equivalent of up to three cups of coffee and the alcohol equivalent of three cans of beer per container.
Major beermakers have already abandoned such products.
Units of Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and SABMiller Plc , the world's No. 1 and No. 2 brewers, pulled caffeinated alcohol drinks from U.S. shelves in 2008 after mounting pressure from several state attorneys general.
Their absence left room for small, entrepreneurial players like Phusion Projects and its Four Loko.
Several states have already implemented bans, according to Representative Rosa DeLauro, head of a House panel that oversees the FDA, who urged a ban earlier this week.
Asked if the agency could act as early as Wednesday, FDA spokeswoman Beth Martino said the agency "is reviewing the scientific data regarding the safety of these drinks" but declined further comment.
The Washington state Liquor Control Board on Nov. 10 approved an emergency ban of caffeinated alcohol drinks after nine Central Washington University students last month fell ill during an off-campus party.
All of the students who became ill were under 21 and had high blood-alcohol readings, officials said. One woman nearly died, officials said, noting that consuming a single, 23.5-ounce can of Four Loko, which is 12 percent alcohol, is considered comparable to drinking five or six beers.
The Michigan Liquor Control Commission on Nov. 4 banned Four Loko and dozens of similar alcoholic drinks from being sold in the state.
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell on Tuesday announced agreements from state liquor wholesalers to voluntarily suspend their shipments and deliveries of caffeinated alcoholic drinks beginning Dec. 10. They include the Four Loko, Four Maxed and Joose brands.
New York’s largest beer distributors said they would stop delivering caffeinated alcoholic beverages to retailers by Dec. 10, The New York Times reported Tuesday night.
Phusion Projects late Tuesday announced it would reformulate its products to remove caffeine, guarana and taurine nationwide.
"Going forward, Phusion will produce only non-caffeinated versions of Four Loko," company co-founders Chris Hunter, Jeff Wright and Jaisen Freeman said in a joint statement.
The three maintained that the combination of alcohol and caffeine is safe.
"If it were unsafe, popular drinks like rum and colas or Irish coffees that have been consumed safely and responsibly for years would face the same scrutiny that our products have recently faced," they said.
Phusion Project's products were approved by the Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, they said.
Their announcement came as U.S. regulators planned to crack down on companies selling alcoholic beverages that include a jolt of caffeine amid pressure from lawmakers, states and consumer groups that contend the drinks are dangerous.
Two U.S. agencies, the Food and Drug Administration and the Federal Trade Commission, are expected to warn manufacturers that adding caffeine to beer and other alcoholic drinks is unsafe and will caution them against marketing such beverages, Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., said Tuesday.
Doing so "will effectively ban products from the market," Schumer said in a statement. He did not say when the agencies would act, and representatives for the FDA and the FTC had no comment.
Schumer and other U.S. lawmakers, as well as attorneys general in states such as Connecticut, have lobbied heavily for some kind of federal regulatory action following reports of young adults across the U.S. passing out or being hospitalized after consuming the so-called alcohol energy drinks.
Consumer advocates have also been urging tougher action against the drinks, sold mostly by privately held companies under the brands Four Loko, Joose and others. The cheap, fruit flavored drinks are growing in popularity, especially among college students, they say.
"Compounded with its health risks, beverages like Four Loko pose a unique danger because they target young people," Schumer said, noting that such drinks can contain the caffeine equivalent of up to three cups of coffee and the alcohol equivalent of three cans of beer per container.
Major beermakers have already abandoned such products.
Units of Anheuser-Busch InBev NV and SABMiller Plc , the world's No. 1 and No. 2 brewers, pulled caffeinated alcohol drinks from U.S. shelves in 2008 after mounting pressure from several state attorneys general.
Their absence left room for small, entrepreneurial players like Phusion Projects and its Four Loko.
Several states have already implemented bans, according to Representative Rosa DeLauro, head of a House panel that oversees the FDA, who urged a ban earlier this week.
Asked if the agency could act as early as Wednesday, FDA spokeswoman Beth Martino said the agency "is reviewing the scientific data regarding the safety of these drinks" but declined further comment.
The Washington state Liquor Control Board on Nov. 10 approved an emergency ban of caffeinated alcohol drinks after nine Central Washington University students last month fell ill during an off-campus party.
All of the students who became ill were under 21 and had high blood-alcohol readings, officials said. One woman nearly died, officials said, noting that consuming a single, 23.5-ounce can of Four Loko, which is 12 percent alcohol, is considered comparable to drinking five or six beers.
The Michigan Liquor Control Commission on Nov. 4 banned Four Loko and dozens of similar alcoholic drinks from being sold in the state.
Connecticut Gov. M. Jodi Rell and the Department of Consumer Protection Commissioner Jerry Farrell on Tuesday announced agreements from state liquor wholesalers to voluntarily suspend their shipments and deliveries of caffeinated alcoholic drinks beginning Dec. 10. They include the Four Loko, Four Maxed and Joose brands.
New York’s largest beer distributors said they would stop delivering caffeinated alcoholic beverages to retailers by Dec. 10, The New York Times reported Tuesday night.
Comments
my fathers truck was stolen
[-(
blue turbins
From Those Fishes - I Fingered An Old Bitch (i got Aids on my finger)
Without the caffeine its not gonna be the same.
[-(
blue turbins
From Those Fishes - I Fingered An Old Bitch (i got Aids on my finger)
He thinks its the alcohol content thats getting him drunk when its actually the reaction.
now it will suck even worse :-))
$10 bucks says erik has one of these "New" 4lokos and decides its a "Fucking waste of time" and he ant believe he wasted his moms money on it.
Like I said.
BIGGEST FUCKING FAIL TROLL I'VE EVER SEEN.
And im not trolling if im speaking the truth. so you child, fail at calling out trolls.
-_-
i rest my case.