By Heather Morton
States are not exactly bellying up to the bar to embrace powdered alcohol.
In April 2014, the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) approved labels for a product called Palcohol that can be added to water to make an alcoholic beverage.
The makers of Palcohol, who are seeking federal approval to market it, say their freeze-dried vodka, rum, “powderitas” and other drinks will appeal to backpackers and others who want a lightweight, more portable form of liquor. Within two weeks of approving the labels, the TTB issued a statement that the label approvals were issued in error.
Before the 2014 label application, two states had existing statutes that would affect any powdered alcohol products. Alaska §04.16.110, enacted in 1995, prohibits the sale of powdered alcoholic beverages for human consumption:
A person may not sell an alcoholic beverage if it:
- Is intended for human consumption and is in powdered form.
- Contains more than 76 percent alcohol by volume.
Delaware tit. 4, §101, amended in the 1985-1986 legislative session, includes powders in the definition of a concentrated alcoholic beverage, but the statutes do not specifically regulate concentrated alcoholic beverages further:
"Concentrated alcoholic beverage" shall mean any powders or crystals, liquid or any other substances which, after being mixed with sugar, water or any other nonalcoholic materials, ferments or otherwise becomes a wine, beer or other alcoholic beverage.
Louisiana, South Carolina and Vermont have joined Alaska by enacting legislation in 2014 prohibiting the sale of powdered alcohol. Similar to Delaware's definition statute, Michigan enacted legislation that includes powder containing 0.5 percent or more of alcohol by volume in the definition of "alcoholic liquor."
State policymakers have raised concerns regarding the potential to misuse powdered alcohol such as snorting or inhaling the product, combining the product with other alcoholic beverages and whether minors may have access to the product.
In response, the Palcohol company has rebutted the idea that people will inhale or snort the product through statements on its website, stating: “It's painful to snort due to the alcohol. Second, it's impractical. It takes approximately 60 minutes to snort the equivalent of one shot of vodka. Why would anyone do that when they can do a shot of liquid vodka in two seconds?”
Instead, the company argues legislators should regulate powdered alcohol to prevent the creation of a black market and require it be sold in licensed liquor stores where a person must present a valid ID to prevent underage drinkers from obtaining Palcohol.
Thirty-four bills in 24 states have been introduced in the 2015 legislative session to date. Colorado’s bill, H.B. 1031, prohibits the use, possession, sale, purchase, transfer, or manufacture of powdered alcohol and classifies a violation as a class 2 misdemeanor. The bill provides that if the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau approves the use of powdered alcohol and the state enacts and implements a mechanism for regulating powdered alcohol, the prohibition would be repealed.
In addition to a bill that would prohibits the consumption, purchase, possession, or sale of powdered alcohol, Hawaii introduced a bill requiring the state Department of Health to conduct a study regarding the risks associated with the consumption of powdered alcohol products and to report its findings to the legislature. Florida’s legislation prohibits the sale of a distilled spirit in powdered form.
Lipsmark, LLC, the company developing Palcohol, continues to seek TTB approval for two different formulations, a beverage formulation (ingestible) and an industrial formulation (non-ingestible).
Heather Morton is a program principal in Fiscal Affairs. She covers alcohol production and sales issues for NCSL.
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