MILWAUKEE—MillerCoors is putting on hold its plans for a new caffeine-infused alcoholic energy drink pending a talk with the group of states that asked it earlier this week to abandon the launch of Sparks Red.
MillerCoors LLC said in a statement late Friday it won’t go ahead with the launch of the drink, which had been scheduled for Oct. 1.
On Wednesday, attorneys general from 25 states asked the company, a joint venture between SABMiller’s U.S. unit and Molson Coors Brewing Co., to abandon its plans, citing health risks to young drinkers.
The group, including New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal, said the combination of alcohol and caffeine reduces drinkers’ sense of intoxication. A letter to MillerCoors Chief Executive Leo Kiely hinted at a potential lawsuit if the product wasn’t pulled.
In a statement Friday, Cuomo said he was glad the drink wouldn’t make it to the market. Attorneys general and trade groups have criticized such alcoholic energy drinks saying young drinkers are especially vulnerable because of their limited judgment and risky behaviors in driving and other activities.
“This decision keeps this dangerous product off our shelves and out of the hands of young consumers whose health would have been placed at risk,” Cuomo said.
Blumenthal said in a statement he hoped MillerCoors decides to completely abandon the drink, rather than put it on hold.
On Wednesday, MillerCoors had said it would go through with the launch and noted then, and on Friday, that the federal Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau, or TTB, has approved all formulas and labeling for Sparks.
“MillerCoors is dedicated to ensuring all of our brands are marketed responsibly to legal drinking age adults,” a statement from the company said.
Attorneys general and advocacy groups have long been targeting the nation’s largest brewer, Anheuser-Busch Cos. Inc., and MillerCoors due to the making and marketing of such drinks.
Groups say these drinks target young drinkers, even those underage, since those consumers are already drawn to highly caffeinated drinks like Red Bull.
The letter by the 25 attorneys general to Kiely said the new drink would have more alcohol than previous versions and it “defies increasing undeniable evidence from medical and public health professionals about the dangers of mixing alcohol with stimulants found in energy drinks.”
The group said the new drink will contain as much as 8 percent alcohol by volume. According to MillerCoors’ Web site, current versions of Sparks have between 6 percent and 7 percent alcohol by volume, while beers like Miller High Life and Coors have just under 5 percent alcohol by volume.
Last week the public advocacy group the Center for Science in the Public Interest filed a suit against MillerCoors to stop the brewer from selling Sparks, saying it’s going after teenagers with the drink.
The suit with Superior Court of the District of Columbia said it is illegal to use caffeine, guarana, ginseng and taurine in alcoholic beverages, all of which are in Sparks products.
It wasn’t clear if MillerCoors’ announcement about Sparks Red would have any effect on the suit. A message left with the CSPI late Friday wasn’t immediately returned.
The abandonment of Sparks Red isn’t the first time a big brewer has made such a move.
In June, Anheuser-Busch said it would reformulate its brands “Tilt” and “Bud Extra” to remove the stimulants they contain as part of a settlement with 11 attorneys general.
In February the attorneys general subpoenaed documents from the St. Louis-based brewer related to its marketing efforts for the alcoholic energy drinks. As part of the settlement, Anheuser-Busch also agreed to pay $200,000 to the states that investigated its practices though it strongly disputed the allegation that its marketing targeted those under the legal drinking age.
