The Food and Drug Administration recently announced it is currently investigating caffeine safety in a number of products. As a result of the FDA's regulation enforcement, Wrigley pulled one of its brands of chewing gum, Alert Energy, from the market.
The FDA's announcement came just as Wrigley kicked off promotion for its new Alert Energy caffeinated gum. Wrigley announced Wednesday that it stopped its sales and marketing campaign of Alert Energy Caffeine Gum "out of respect" for the FDA. According to the label, one stick of gum has the equivalent to drinking a half cup of coffee.
"One pack of this gum is like having four cups of coffee in your pocket. Caffeine is even being added to jelly beans, marshmallows, sunflower seeds and other snacks for its stimulant effect," Deputy Commissioner for Foods and Veterinary Medicine at the FDA Michael R. Taylor said last week.
The FDA wants to particularly investigate the effects of caffeine on children and adolescents. Taylor added that many energy drinks are being marketed aggressively to younger people. Even caffeinated waffle and syrup products such as Wired Waffles and Wired Syrup have hit the market; Taylor called the trend "disturbing."
"The gum is just one more unfortunate example of the trend to add caffeine to food. Our concern is about caffeine appearing in a range of new products, including ones that may be attractive and readily available to children and adolescents, without careful consideration of their cumulative impact," Taylor said.
Wrigley's said Wednesday that it discussed the caffeine safety concerns in products.
"After discussions with the FDA, we have a greater appreciation for its concern about the proliferation of caffeine in the nation's food supply. There is a need for changes in the regulatory framework to better guide the consumers and the industry about the appropriate level and use of caffeinated products," President Casey Keller said in a statement to iTechPost.
The FDA said it applauds Wrigley's decision to pull the Alert Energy gum sales and campaign, saying that the company's move "demonstrates real leadership and commitment to the public health," Taylor said.
