Alcopops Cheaper Than Energy Drinks: 7-Eleven Gambles with Children’S Lives
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Alcopops Cheaper than Energy Drinks: 7-Eleven Gambles with Children’s Lives A Report by Alcohol Justice May 2012 Alcopops Cheaper than Energy Drinks: 7-Eleven Gambles with Children’s Lives Executive Summary Alcopops, legally identified as “flavored malt Alcohol Justice is building a community beverages,” are sweet, bubbly high alcohol coalition for an Alcopop-Free ZoneTM (AFZ), a products that are packaged and marketed to campaign asking retailers to voluntarily stop appeal to youth. They are used by the alcohol selling alcopops. We recommend: industry as a transition beverage from soda and non-alcoholic energy drinks to hook youth 1) Community residents, led by youth on alcohol and secure customers for life. and parents, should make their Supersized alcopops, available in single concerns about alcopops known to servings with up to 12% alcohol by volume, the Uppal and Singh families who encourage excessive drinking and are operate 7-Eleven franchises in Marin available at convenience stores frequented by County, and all other storeowners youth throughout the nation. who sell alcopops in the area. In Marin County in Northern California we 2) Counties and cities should put surveyed the prices of supersized alcopops at conditions on land use to protect the popular 7-Eleven stores in Marin and found health and safety of youth. that supersized alcopops were being offered Specifically, officials (police, sheriff, at a promotional price break, priced cheaper land use and planning) should ask for than non-alcoholic energy drinks, and priced restrictions on all single-serving cheaper per standard drink than beer and alcopops and malt liquor sales as even malt liquor. conditions for ABC licenses, and as conditions on use permits. Excessive alcohol consumption is a substantial problem in Marin County, and 3) Retailers should voluntarily cease alcohol is the most widely used drug among purchasing, selling and marketing of the county’s youth. Although alcohol alcopops. We encourage Marin producers should ultimately be held municipalities and policymakers to accountable for the harm their products pass resolutions in support of the cause, alcopop retailers such as 7-Eleven, Alcopop-Free ZoneTM Marin. Inc. and its local franchisees bear responsibility for selling harmful products to 4) Youth and public health groups their communities. throughout the United States should consider forming Alcopop-Free Because numerous attempts by federal and ZoneTM coalitions and demand that state regulators to address the alcopops retailers stop selling the most youth- problem have been thwarted by the alcohol attractive drinks, alcopops. industry, Alcohol Justice has turned to local, direct action as the only way to protect communities from these dangerous products. Along with Marin County community groups, public health advocates, youth and residents, 1 process. These claims benefit the alcohol How Alcopops Appeal to Youth music artist Snoop Dogg is the celebrity healthy lifestyles, quality schools and relative popularity in Marin County, we decided to beverages" that do not look like or the price by the number of standard drinks. Supersized alcopops were priced the same ABV as the domestic beer brands Background Some supersized alcopops were priced industry because alcopop products are taxed Youth are the primary consumers of alcopops, spokesperson for Monster as well as Blast. affluence, and was recently ranked the #1 take a closer look at alcopops pricing at these taste like beer (Mike’s Hard, Mike’s For example, a 6-pack of 12-ounce cans of cheaper per standard drink than beer. (5%), while supersized, single-serving cheaper per standard drink than malt liquor. Alcohol Justice has been involved in several at the lower beer rate, but don't taste like, look with one-third of teenage girls age 12 to 18 Snoop Dogg's promotional videos for both healthiest county in the state. The caveat: it stores. Harder, Smirnoff Ice, Sparks, Blast, Budweiser contains 6 standard drinks. Priced Comparing the average cost per standard alcopops contain 6-12% ABV. The lowest price per standard drink, $0.53, Alcopops, particularly supersized alcopops, o The California State Board of While regulation and taxation of alcopops are 4) Youth and public health groups local and national campaigns to remove like, nor are they called beer. and one-fifth of teenage boys having tried an products are accessible to viewers of all ages lays claim to the second highest excessive Joose, and Jeremiah Weed). Within at $6.99, the cost per standard drink was drink by beverage type, including all products was the promotional price for single quantity, are unquestionably dangerous products that Equalization decision to correct the the purview of the State of California, there is throughout the United States should 4 youth-oriented alcohol products, particularly alcopops product. Alcopops are used by the on social media sites such as YouTube and drinking rate in the state, with 24% having the alcopops category, we $6.99 / 6, or $1.17. A 23.5-ounce can of Four surveyed, alcopops and beer were Looking at the largest available size of 23.5-oz cans of Four Loko, offered at 2 for $5. encourage excessive alcohol consumption tax rate to a distilled spirits level was much that local residents and municipalities consider forming Alcopop-Free alcopops, from the market. In our own In the late 1990s, alcohol producers caught alcohol industry as a Twitter. This heavy-handed marketing and engaged in either binge drinking, defined as differentiated between “supersized” Loko, at 12% ABV, is 4.7 standard drinks, and comparable in price, at $1.03 per standard alcopops, 23.5-oz, compared to 24-oz beer, Even at the regular price of $2.79 each, the among youth. Supersized alcopops are overruled by a California appeals can do. ZoneTM coalitions and demand that backyard, along with Marin County the wave of popular caffeine-laden, non- “transitional packaging obviously targets underage energy consuming more than 4 (women) or 5 (men) alcopops—those available in 16-oz priced at $2.50, was $0.53 per standard drink. drink for beer and $1.01 for alcopops. Malt we saw an even larger price break. At these price per standard drink is $0.58, the same as youth-attractive flavored malt beverages from court, retailers stop selling the most youth- community groups, public health advocates, alcoholic energy drinks such as Red Bull. beverage,” marketed drink consumers. The ads are clear—drinking alcoholic beverages on a single occasion in We conducted a limited pricing survey of servings or larger, with alcohol by liquor was lowest in price per standard drink sizes, alcopops fell to $0.85 per standard the price per standard drink for a 40-oz bottle 16 to 24 fluid ounces, 6% to 12% ABV, and 1) Community residents, led by youth attractive drinks, alcopops. and residents, Alcohol Justice is building a These energy drinks provide a "buzz" with specifically to teens Monster is cool, but drinking Blast elevates the past 30 days, or heavy drinking, defined alcopops and other beverages available at volume higher than 5%, and regular across all comparisons, at $0.58 (malt liquor drink, while the price of beer is the same as its of cheap malt liquor, and 23% less per contain between 2.5 to 5 standard drinks in a o Legislation to limit supersizing was and parents, need to make their community coalition to get these insidious high caffeine and stimulating additives such and youth to get them the drinker to pimp status. as drinking more than 1 (women) or 2 (men) Marin 7-Eleven stores in March 2012 to better serving sizes (approximately 12-oz) was only available in single-serving quantities average, at $1.03. standard drink than the cheapest beer product single serving, enough to cause serious introduced in other states but never in concerns about alcopops known to as L-carnitine, taurine, and ginseng, and are hooked on alcohol drinks per day on average in the past 30 understand the special pricing appeal of that contain about 5% ABV (Mike’s of 24-oz or larger). ($0.75). Blast 23.5-oz cans were priced physical and mental harm to youth. The high- California, 7-Eleven, the Uppal/Singh families products off Marin’s store shelves by asking 8 retailers to agree not to sell alcopops, and available to consumers of any age. Brands and secure days, compared to 17% statewide. alcopops relative to other beverage choices Hard products, Smirnoff Ice). All 11 of the Marin County 7-Eleven stores similarly to 40-oz bottles of malt liquor, at $0.59 alcohol content in the products being offered and all other storeowners who sell passing local government resolutions to such as Sparks (MillerCoors), Tilt (Anheuser- customers for life. According to Larry Meredith, Marin County's available. We wanted to find out for ourselves sell alcopops. Of all products surveyed, beer When single-serving quantities were per standard drink. encourages excessive drinking, already a o The California Department of alcopops. support an Alcopop-Free ZoneTM Marin (AFZ). Busch InBev), and Four Loko (Phusion Department of Health and Human Services what price breaks on alcopops a Marin We then compared alcopops to other drink was available in the largest variety of sizes compared, alcopops were priced less per substantial problem in Marin County. Alcoholic Beverage Control has Projects) combined caffeine and alcohol into Alcopop producers have been wildly Director, excessive drinking is problematic teenager would find when he or she walks types at two levels: and quantities. Malt liquor was available for standard drink than beer. Beer actually refused to take action on alcopops, 2) While only the state can ban premixed alcoholic energy drinks (AEDs). successful in marketing alcopops to youth, among all age groups, including Marin's into a 7-Eleven store looking for a buzz (or purchase only in single-serving quantities.