Attorneys general in several states have subpoenaed documents from A-B and Miller as part of an investigation in to the marketing of caffeinated alcoholic energy drinks, says the AP.

A-B issued a statement:

“Anheuser-Busch is, of course, cooperating with the subpoenas,” the company said. “But it is important to realize that the AGs are investigating products whose formulation and labeling already have been approved by the federal authorities, as well as by those states that require state liquor authority approval.”

Critics of the drinks say they are marketed to teenagers who already are familiar with and consume energy drinks, but Miller denied this accusation in a statement:

“We responsibly market our products to legal drinking age consumers consistent with industry marketing codes and applicable laws and regulations,” the Milwaukee-based company, a unit of SABMiller PLC, said.

A-B continued:

“If the Attorneys General truly believe that, despite the state and federal regulatory approvals, alcohol and caffeine should not be mixed, then they should use their powers to persuade these authorities to regulate or ban all such beverages, not just the lower-alcohol, prepackaged ones,” the statement said.

We didn’t get the impression that the AGs thought people shouldn’t mix caffeine and alcohol, just that maybe the drinks shouldn’t be marketed to kids (if indeed they actually are.)

The first time someone handed us a “Sparks” or whatever, we seriously thought it was soda from ALDI or something.

States probe marketing of energy drinks [BusinessWeek]
(Photo:Mister Brentus)

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