The Food and Drug Administration cracked down on the sale of alcoholic energy drinks on Wednesday as a growing number of people have reported falling violently ill after consuming the cocktails. The FDA sent letters to four companies threatening seizure of their products for violating food safety laws if they don’t fix the problem, triggering an effective ban on the drinks. The companies have 15 days to respond.
Now Four Loko is disappearing from store shelves faster than ever, said Shashi Sharma, a cashier for A-1 Wines and Liquors on K Street Northwest.
“Just today we sold 10 cases,” he said. “I think the news is helping sales.”
Packed with as much caffeine as roughly four cups of coffee, Four Loko makes consumers feel more alert as they simultaneously chug the equivalency of five beers.
Sharma said he wouldn’t stop selling the drink — which runs between $2 and $3 a can — regardless of any ban.
“We have thousands of dollars of inventory here and on the way,” he said. “So if they don’t refund us, we will sell it.”
Combining “uppers” and “downers” isn’t a new phenomenon — it’s a popular recipe for destruction that has taken the form of pills, powder and drinks for decades.
But in the last several years beverage companies have begun capitalizing on a legal, low-cost fix for partiers looking for an edge.
A 24-year-old Washington man said he had tried Four Loko several times without trouble.
“People drink it because it looks hilarious and it’s known as ‘blackout in a can,'” he said, asking to remain anonymous for work-related reasons.
Then one night, he downed a 16-ounce can and “15 minutes later, I lost complete motor control and fell on the ground out of nowhere in the middle of a conversation. Was thinking clearly, but couldn’t control my body… This stuff is dangerous.”
A 24-year-old D.C. woman who also asked to remain anonymous said her friends hold parties devoted to consuming Four Loko.
“It gets you drunk — such as waking up on main streets and not knowing how you got there [or] waking up with your mom in bed next to you, because she was scared you were going to throw up in your sleep,” she said. But it’s effectiveness and fruit punch flavor keeps her coming back. “It gets you absurdly drunk. And it’s funny.”
Partiers were mixing energy drinks and alcohol long before Four Loko. Red Bull and vodka is a staple on most drink menus.
But Four Loko lends novelty to the concept, said American University student Tazwell Jones.
“Knowing that something is risky and likely short-lived is a huge incentive for a lot of kids to buy it up while they can,” he said.
He said he first heard of the drink in news reports.
“Now, though, I’m getting Facebook invites to Four Loko parties and pre-games, and seeing random Four-Loko-related status updates pollute my Facebook newsfeed,” he said.
