More than 3,600 people in Sweden have signed a petition calling for the ban of alcoholic popsicles from grocery stores across the country.
IOGT-NTO, the Swedish branch of a worldwide temperance movement, is leading the fight to remove the products from stores. The director of the organization, Leif Arne Gustavsson, claims that this novel marketing of alcohol consumption will pique the interest of children, who are normally associated with the frozen treats.
N1CE, the company producing and selling the frozen cocktails, was co-founded by former Swedish House Mafia DJ Sebastian Ingrosso and co-owned by Alesso and Axwell. The popsicles have an alcohol content of five percent and are available in four flavors: mojito, strawberry daiquiri, piña colada, and margarita.
According to Axwell on their WeFunder page for the popsicles, the products were originally meant for festivals and clubs – all adult settings. However, their immediate success prompted them to take their distribution a step further.
An excerpt from N1CE’s letter to their investors reads: “This summer, we’re contracted into festivals that have over 2.5 million attendees, which is the push we need to go global with our brand. The overall market potential for this is huge, not just in festivals and in the music scene, but in hotels, restaurants, beach clubs, retailers, groceries, convenience stores –you name it and we’re going there.”
A legal loophole allows N1CE to market the popsicles as a food instead of a beverage. The company maintains their claim that they have done nothing wrong, bringing attention to their 18+ age recommendation.
However, Swedish English language newspaper The Local states that the country has always had a tight grip on alcohol consumption. Aside from the state-run alcohol monopoly Systembolaget, all commercial entities are prohibited from selling wine or spirits that contain more than 3.5 percent alcohol.
N1CE has since released a statement, saying, “Because of EU legislation from 2004 there is no statutory age limit for the product, which is unfortunate. Since 2015 we have had a strict age limit of 18 and over for our product. This is also what the Swedish Grocers’ Federation (Svensk Dagligvaruhandel) has pushed for, which we are in favour of.”
H/T: Death and Taxes
