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Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco Protects the Underage from Alcoholic Energy Drinks
April 30, 2008
Tallahassee – The Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s Division of Alcoholic Beverages and Tobacco (ABT) executed a statewide enforcement effort this weekend to protect underage persons from energy drinks containing alcohol. The Division coordinated a statewide operation to enforce retailer compliance with alcoholic beverage laws and ensure that no products containing alcohol are being sold to people under 21.
“Protecting the safety of Florida's young people is a top priority of the Department of Business and Professional Regulation and being familiar with new products that contain alcohol is an important part of ensuring retailer compliance,” said Interim Secretary Chuck Drago.
Highly caffeinated energy drinks laced with alcohol are a new trend in the alcoholic beverage market. The packaging of these products can be confusing to consumers who may not know that they contain alcohol. Alcoholic beverages can be dangerous at high doses, especially among the underage. According to the Marin Institute, energy drink sales have soared to $3.2 billion in 2006, which represented a 516 percent inflation--adjusted since 2001.
Businesses that sell the energy drinks containing alcohol were targeted. The Division used underage investigative aids to execute compliance checks for the sale of alcoholic beverages commonly marketed to young consumers.
Establishments that were cited for selling alcoholic energy drinks to the investigative aides were educated on checking identification and becoming familiar with the energy drinks that contain alcohol. During the statewide operation, 932 establishments were visited and173 arrests were made. The agents found a 76 percent compliance rate with underage drinking laws. The information below show the result of the operation by city:
Location |
Stores Surveyed |
Arrests |
Compliance Rate |
Miami |
34 |
21 |
38% |
Ft. Lauderdale |
57 |
26 |
53% |
West Palm Beach |
23 |
11 |
52% |
Ft. Myers |
60 |
12 |
80% |
Daytona |
28 |
9 |
68% |
Jacksonville |
80 |
8 |
90% |
Orlando |
127 |
16 |
87% |
Ft. Pierce |
120 |
11 |
91% |
Tallahassee |
139 |
19 |
86% |
Panama City |
92 |
18 |
80% |
Pensacola |
63 |
4 |
94% |
Tampa |
46 |
9 |
80% |
Gainesville |
63 |
9 |
86% |
The mission of ABT is to keep alcohol and tobacco out of the hands of underage persons, to ensure that licensed establishments are in compliance with the laws and rules regulating the industry in Florida, and to collect taxes and fees related to these industries.
The Department of Business and Professional Regulation’s mission is to license efficiently and regulate fairly. The Department licenses more than one million businesses and professionals ranging from real estate agents, veterinarians, and accountants to contractors and cosmetologists. For more information, please visit www.MyFloridaLicense.com
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