Dragon Soop Blue Raspberry Caffeinated Alcoholic Beverage (8 x 500ml Cans)

Product Information

The company explained that in 2015, Dragon Soop was fully investigated by the Independent Complaints Panel (Panel) under Code rules 3.2(f) and 3.2(h) which it found to not be in breach. The company highlighted that it had received a letter from the Chair of the Panel that there had not been any breach of the Code and that the decision was final. Heavy - Active for much of the day, walking non-stop and carrying objects. Typical jobs: hospital/ward nurse, waitressing in a busy restaurant, cleaner, porter, labourer/construction worker, gardener, farm worker. Leisure Activity Level One can of Dragon Soop contains 175mg of caffeine – more than the 150mg found in a double espresso from a coffee shop. The company then explained that Dragon Soop Venom had similar dominant flavour notes to its on-trade namesake which included orange, other fruit hints and a touch of the rich, round caramel associated with Bourbon. A factual statement that a product contains a particular ingredient, for example high caffeine content, is unlikely in itself to be problematic under the Code.”

In this case, the name and imagery created an overall impression that was over the line of acceptability. For these reasons, it was a breach of the Code.” Under the ‘Health effects concerns’ paragraph of the complaint, the company highlighted that NIADA had stated that “so many young people are consuming this drink usually in large quantities.” The company stated that this claim was based on shaky evidence of one small focus group made up of young, often under-age, substance and alcohol abusers. The company stated that there was no proof that Dragon Soop was consumed in greater excess than any other alcoholic drink. Additionally, the company stated that young people who did consume alcohol in great excess might reasonably be supposed to consume any popular alcoholic drink in large quantities. In summary of the above, the Panel concluded that Dragon Soop Venom did breach Code rule 3.2(b), but did not breach Code rules 3.1, 3.2(a), 3.2(f), 3.2(h),3.2(j) or any other part of the Code. Action by company: Moderate - On your feet for much of the day, either standing or occasional slow paced walking. Typical jobs: shop assistant, teacher, chef/cook, bar worker, engineer. The company explained that at the time the complaint was made, Dragon Soop had 13 flavours, not 12 as stated by the complainant in the first paragraph under the header “Appeal to under 18s.” The company stated that at the time of its formal submission to the complaint, Dragon Soop now had 14 flavours.

‘I’ve just Googled it. It’s got quite a high alcohol content’

Concerns have been raised over Dragon Soop – a potent mix of alcohol and caffeine being downed by Scots teens – which can create “wired, wide-awake drunks”. Moderately active - Do light to moderate intensity exercise 3-4 times a week. E.g. going to the gym / swimming / cycling / horse riding / dance classes / playing golf. Daily dog walking (brisk pace, twice a day).

The company stated that a company, whether it be a Code Signatory or member of the Portman Group, should be able to trust that a ‘final’ decision was final. The company explained that should the same product be subject to complaints of the same nature on more than one occasion, businesses would find it impossible to make medium to long-term planning and investment decisions. The new Dragon Soop E.S.Q. - which stands for Extra Special Quality - will be bottled in 70cl glass containers and will come in Wild Dark Fruits and Tangerine Dream flavours. Offshore Island deliveries will take longer than two days including Channel Islands, Isle of Man, Scottish Highlands and Islands and Scilly Isles. The company noted that there were specific cues which had been defined by the Panel as possibly having a particular appeal to under-18s. ‘Bright, high contrast colours’ were an example and the company highlighted that many alcoholic brands featured colour schemes which could be described in this way. In contrast, the company explained that Dragon Soop was specifically designed not to be garish or particularly bright and that the different colours used throughout the range were to denote the various flavours within the range, as was common practice for flavoured alcoholic beverages. The company stated that it recognised that while each element of the marketing and design of Dragon Soop was important, the overall impression was the most important element to avoid direct or indirect particular appeal to under-18s.Firstly, the company highlighted that NIADA had stated that it wished to submit “a complaint about caffeinated alcoholic drinks”, but that the organisation had only singled out Dragon Soop from a group of other caffeinated alcoholic drinks. The company stated that the organisation had done this based on the unscientific basis that Dragon Soop is what NIADA called “the more popular drink of choice.” The company then explained that since Dragon Soop had been launched in 2010 there had only been three complaints in the intervening 12 years (the complaint from 2015 which was considered against Dragon Soop Strawberry and Lime, which was found not to be in breach of the Code, and the other two which were currently subject to investigation.) The company stated that this was a remarkably low figure for a brand that sold 13.6 million cans per year. The high strength content encourages binge and excessive drinking and leads to irresponsible behaviour as most young people drink more than one can breaching the anti-social behaviour code of conduct. The high caffeine intake along with the high alcohol content masks the effects of drunkenness. Hence, young people don’t realise how intoxicated they are, which can lead to becoming unwell and engaging in risky behaviours. The Panel considered the name Venom would be recognised by the majority of UK consumers to mean ‘poison’ in its day-to-day usage and noted this in the context of a beverage which had a relatively high alcohol and caffeine content. The 25-year-old completed a drink-drivers’ rehabilitation course and saw his ban reduced – but it seems it hadn’t taught him about the dangers of getting behind the wheel after consuming the high-alcohol energy drink. ‘He thought it would have been out of his system’