Juice box cocktails

What's the difference between these two beverages?

They both come in brightly colored aluminum pouches.

They both come with little straws.

They both contain (at least some) fruit juice.

But one of them is a "ready to drink cocktail". 

A comment posted on the Marin Institute's web page about this product states that selling alcohol in juice boxes is no different than selling beer in the same kind of cans in which soda-pop is sold.

And, the website about the cocktail says that the manufacturer "does not promote or encourage the use of alcoholic beverages; this alcoholic beverage is not intended for the consumption by minors. We are committed to advertising and promoting the brand in a responsible manner."

What do you think?  Is this another example of marketing alcohol to minors or is this beverage being marketed to adults who want the convenience and fun of drinking alcohol through a juice box straw?

Call on Pabst to stop marketing alcopops to minors

This week, seventeen attorney's general, including Washington State's, asked Pabst Brewing Company to stop marketing Blast by Colt 45 to underage drinkers and to significantly reduce the number of alcohol servings in each can.  The drink, being promoted by rapper Snoop Dogg, comes in a colorful can containing 23.5 ounces, with an alcohol content of 12 percent—more than most cans of beer, CNN reports.

The Marin Institute is collecting signatures on a petition asking Pabst to stop peddling alcopops to urban youth and to stop using Snoop Dogg as their celebrity spokesperson.

Hello Kitty wine?

When asked by the LA Weekly blog writer if the Hello Kitty label will attract underage drinkers, the CEO of the company marketing the wine in the United States said, "There will always be a concern when it comes to marketing a brand identity that has appeal to both adults and children. As a company, we follow all industry standards and guidelines for age verification . . . My take on this: with over 60,000 Hello Kitty sku's in the marketplace and at 35 years old now, she is definitely ready for more adult skewed products. I don't think that the $15,000 Hello Kitty handbags are aimed at children either."

As the Marin Institute points out, "Hello Kitty's portfolio may have expanded from inexpensive coin purses for girls to include luxury fashion bags for women, but alcohol is not like any other product. It is not for children and adults alike, and should not be advertised as such."

According to a fact sheet about alcohol advertising and youth from the Center on Alcohol Marketing and Youth, "A study on the responses of young people to alcohol advertising found that underage youth are drawn to music, animals and people characters, story and humor in alcohol advertising. Ads that were liked by youth in the study were more likely to elicit responses from youth saying they wanted to purchase the brand and product advertised. The three most popular alcohol ads among youth in the study used animal characters as the leading actors."

Beer taxes

Lately, I've received a lot of information about increasing taxes on beer. Increasing the cost of alcohol has proven to reduce underage drinking. Lawmakers are looking at beer taxes as a way to generate revenue during these difficult economic times.

Here are some links about beer taxes:

-- The Marin Institute recently release an online alcohol tax and fee calculator to assist lawmakers looking for new revenue. According to the calculator, "The Washington beer excise tax was last changed in 1997 and has lost 25% of its value. If the tax had kept pace with inflation, instead of $0.25 per gallon, it would now be $0.35 per gallon."

-- According to JoinTogether, Senate lawmakers are looking at raising the federal tax on beer and soft drinks as part of a funding package for national healthcare reform.

-- New Jersey's National Council on Alcoholism and Drug Dependence has launched a media and advocacy campaign that includes a proposal to increase the state's beer tax to raise money for treatment services.

How to regulate alcohol advertising

The Marin Institute recently released a guide for regulating alcohol advertising. The guide is meant to help policymakers draft effective state and local laws to minimize youth exposure to alcohol advertising.

It includes:
-- a section about regulating commercial speech and the first amendment;
-- a checklist for drafting laws;
-- examples of restrictions;
-- model language for current laws;
-- current laws regarding alcohol advertising;