WASHINGTON — The manufacturer of popular caffeinated alcoholic drink Four Loko said Tuesday that it will remove the caffeine from its products, pulling the blend off the market just as the Food and Drug Administration is poised to ban it.
Phusion Projects said in a statement posted on its website that the company will remove caffeine and two other ingredients from its products going forward.
The announcement came as the FDA is expected to find as early as today that caffeine is an unsafe food additive in alcoholic drinks. That finding essentially would ban Four Loko and drinks like it.
The FDA ruling “should be the nail in the coffin of these dangerous and toxic drinks,” said U.S. Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., who has pushed the Obama administration to ban the beverages.
