Controversial Drink Disappearing From Oklahoma Shelves

Colleen Chen, News 9

OKLAHOMA CITY -- The controversial drink Four Loko will soon disappear from Oklahoma shelves. Four Loko is a caffeinated alcoholic beverage that contains taurine and guarana. It is blamed for sending college students in Roslyn, Washington to the hospital after they drank it at a party. Health experts say the caffeine in the drink masks the effects of alcohol and leads users to drink more alcohol than they can handle.

Every alcoholic beverage that comes into Oklahoma has to be registered with the Alcoholic Beverage Laws Enforcement commission, but it's not the ABLE commission behind pulling Four Loko out of the state. The broker who brings Four Loko into Oklahoma sent the commission a letter on November 2, 2010 informing the commission that the company would no longer represent Four Loko starting December 3, 2010. That means the manufacturer will no longer be allowed to ship Four Loko into the Sooner State after December 3.

The Oklahoma ABLE Commission calls the move by the broker unprecedented.

"He didn't give a reason," said ABLE Commission General Counsel John Maisch.

Maisch believes the broker's move came with the safety of Oklahomans in mind. "It's president lives in Oklahoma City. His kids go to Oklahoma City schools," he added.

Parents nationwide aren't crazy about Four Loko. Maisch said one can of it equals a six pack of beer.

Liquor store owners say Four Loko is a very successful product.

"As far as new products. It's done very well. It's amazing how many cases we've sold just in the last couple of months since it hit the market," said Sam Eid of Sam's Warehouse Liquor in Oklahoma City.

The move from Oklahoma's Four Loko broker is prompting a move from the ABLE commission itself.

"We will be paneling a group of scientific experts from Oklahoma and the Midwest to study the issue of caffeinated alcoholic beverages and the safety of those products," said Maisch.

There is no word on how long the study will take. In the meantime, the ABLE commission has issued a moratorium on the approval of any pre-mixed caffeinated alcoholic beverages that have caffeine, guarana, taurine, and alcohol. The moratorium is not a ban on Four Loko. Any amount of the product that is already in the state Oklahoma can still be sold and consumed.