Forget Four Loko. U.S. regulators now have a new boozy, sugary product to worry about: alcoholic whipped creams.
Liquor stores are stocking up on Whipped Lightning and Canisters of Cream, liquor-infused whipped creams that comes in flavours like chocolate, raspberry, orange and cherry, the Boston Herald reports.
Costing about $13 a can, and containing a significant amount of alcohol, they ought to be monitored for potential abuse, a public health official told the newspaper. Since Canisters of Cream is 30-proof, a single shot can pack a wallop.
Earlier this month, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration issued a ban on caffeinated alcoholic drinks, declaring them unsafe. Several states had earlier limited their sales over concerns they masked the signs of consuming too much alcohol and were marketed toward minors. The buzz prompted the popular brand Four Loko to remove the caffeine from its products ahead of the FDA crackdown.
The reach of the FDA ban, however, is limited in a growing supply of sweet, alcoholic concoctions, and the new alcoholic whipped creams appear to be a hit with consumers. (Some fear young consumers.)
"I'm amazed at the amount we've sold,'' one liquor vendor told the Boston Herald. "I thought these would be one of those kitschy things we pulled off the shelf in six months, but within the first week we had already sold out the initial order.''
What alcoholic gimmick will we see next? Share your guesses in the comment field below
Wency Leung