There’s something strange coming to liquor store shelves: powdered alcohol. Only a third of adults have heard of powdered alcohol; however, the product has been approved by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Alcohol and Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau (TBB) to be sold in the United States.
The creator of powdered alcohol will be launching Palcohol in liquor stores across the nation this summer. This alcohol-on-the-go solution replaces your favorite spirits with powder that can be added to the liquid or food of your choice.
The new product raises concerns about keeping alcohol out of underage hands. Underage drinking is a relatively common problem in the United States. According to Mothers Against Drunk Driving (MADD),almost half of all 10th graders have consumed alcohol within the last twelve months. About 15% of high school teens admit to binge drinking, but only 1% of parents of high schoolers will admit their child may be involved in such behavior.
A University of Michigan national poll was conducted in May 2015 to determine the public viewpoint on Palcohol and other powdered alcohol products.
Their poll confirmed that 90% of adults had concerns that powdered alcohol will be misused by people under the age of 21. Over 80% of those surveyed agreed that powdered alcohol could potentially increase underage consumption and may be easier to buy and hide than its liquid counterpart.
Approximately 60% of adults believe that powdered alcohol should be banned, but an even larger majority favors special regulations for online and social media marketing.
Louisiana, South Carolina and Vermont have already banned powdered alcohol sales. Postponement of activity on the subject by the Texas House of Representatives has many predicting that a powdered alcohol ban is unlikely in our state.
