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Original poster

is it illegal to sell energy drinks to children/minors?

32 replies

queenrollo · 30/03/2009 12:00

this is something that has been brought up elsewhere in conversation.
A friend is trying to establish whether it is in fact illegal to sell energy drinks (Red Bull for example) to children/minors.
We can't find anything on the internet to back this up, and he wants to be sure before he sends off a letter of complaint.

OP posts:
charlotteolivia · 30/03/2009 12:01

no more illegal than it is to sell a bottle of coke i'm afraid

PenelopePitstops · 30/03/2009 12:04

nop it isn't sadly

Trinityrhino · 30/03/2009 12:04

why would it be?

Trinityrhino · 30/03/2009 12:05

I think it should be btw but I can't understand why you would think it is when coke is sold to children

Ripeberry · 30/03/2009 12:05

Energy drink + small child = Chaos!

Original poster
queenrollo · 30/03/2009 12:20

this has arisen because his child was on some kind of course. One of the tasks had the children deciding what to 'buy' from a tuck shop. If they chose to buy energy drinks they had points deducted from their total score. The children were told by the staff that this is because it is illegal to sell energy drinks to children, and they should know this and therefore shouldn't choose them
He is looking into this carefully as is not happy about his child effectively being lied to. He just thinks it is an irresponsible thing to do and wants to draw it to the attention of the organisers.
The children were allowed cola earlier in the day and he has already pointed out that it is just as bad for them.

OP posts:
TrillianAstra · 30/03/2009 12:29

Coke is not as bad as energy drinks, it has a lot less caffeine. It's not illegal to sell coffee to children either.

TrillianAstra · 30/03/2009 12:32

A 250 ml can of Red Bull has 80 mg of caffeine, a 330 ml can of Coca Cola has 40 mg.

MerlinsBeard · 30/03/2009 12:46

it is illegal to sell alcohol, knives, glues (and in shops they refuse to sell RAZORS) to minors but they can sell any (non alcoholic) drink they want to.

Trinityrhino · 31/03/2009 07:43

so two cans of coke = a red bull

still both foul, horrid stuff

ilove · 31/03/2009 07:47

Yes it is against trading standards law to sell them to under 16's. I work in the local Sainsburys, and we have signs up stating this and have to see ID from the people buying if they are obviously under 21.

UndertheBoredwalk · 31/03/2009 07:56

No that's not right, there is no law at all on age restrictions for energy drinks. Legally anybody of any age can buy them. A few places do restrict sales of them to certain ages though because the're not recommended for I think under 16's.
So they are wrong, it isn't illegal for children to buy any energy drinks.

MerlinsBeard · 01/04/2009 17:53

it isn't illegal that is just sainsbury's policy

Nat11 · 27/04/2009 10:28

Red Bull has actually got a caution label on that states that children under the age of 16 cannot purchase the item, shop assistants should be aware of this. However other energy drinks haven't got the label and therefore can be sold just like a normal can of coke etc. Check the label for Red Bull and others to be certain. But no energy drinks should be sold to children due to the great problems they can cause.

cheekymajeeka · 12/07/2009 08:15

I used to work at ASDA and we were not allowd to sell any type of energy drink 'RED BULL etc...' to minors under the age of 16. I understand this is the stores policy. The reason being in contains a very high level of caffeine which can also become addictive to youngsters (the label actually states- not recommended for children and pregnant women).
Why do children need to drink energy drinks anyway....they have enough natural energy!! These type of drinks should be banned to children they do not need extra stimulants.

mumno1stheword · 16/06/2011 23:05

My 8 year old son was offered a can of stimulant energy drink is place of a can of soft drink as the shop keeper said they were out of date. My son asked if the can he was been offered was ok for kids and was told that it was. The can clearly states that it is not suitable for children yet the shop keeper still sold it. I think that licencing laws should be introduced and that people who sell to children should be prosecuted! I contacted our local police who took down a statement and were to speak to the shop keeper but also report the incident to the trading standards. The caffeine content can send a child heart facing and cause palpitations. Surely this is enough to impose legal restrictions relating to the sale of these drinks to under 16 year olds.

mesomorph · 27/07/2011 16:54

Are you mental? It can cause that symptom in anyone of any age, children being no more susceptable to it than adults. If having palpitations (also reffered to as a racing heart...) was worthy of that reaction then you would need to outlaw thiemparks, fairgrounds, bungee jumping, flying, adreanalin (good luck with that one) or any source of exhilliration or pannic. Just because something may happen there is no need to go all iron fist on it's existance. Stop puting the preasure on retailers and take responsability as a parent - educate your child and put your own rules down. Just because you have an issue with it does not give you the right to dictate how other people are affected by it.

GypsyMoth · 27/07/2011 19:31

our local independent store refuses under 16's too

MonsterEnergyRep · 04/07/2013 13:42

This reply has been deleted

Message deleted by Mumsnet for breaking our Talk Guidelines. Replies may also be deleted.

bigsister4600 · 12/05/2015 15:42

my son and friends are 9 and going out to drink mountain dew kickstart and i don't know what to do... can i have help?

ThisGuy1 · 07/06/2015 19:46

as a 16 year old i enjoy energy drinks. the other day i went to buy one and the woman at the counter asked for ID. me being 16, i dont have ID. the woman also stated that you had to be 18 to purchase one whereas that is not the case, the age restriction is anything lower than 16. im still confused about this whole thing.

NotOneIota · 14/06/2015 16:35

I work in retail,and when a product with age guidelines gets scanned at the till,a red 'check ID' flag comes up on the till screen. We sell Red Bull,and our tills let the purchase go through unchallenged. It does,however,red flag cans of female shaving foam,the customer has to be over 16 to buy those. The madness of retail!

HarrietSchulenberg · 14/06/2015 16:44

My 14 year old regularly buys energy drinks from Home Bargains, despite there being a warning on the can that they are not suitable for children or pregnant women.
He knows that I don't approve of this as he is physically too immature to handle the amount of caffeine in them. He gleefully buys them anyway and takes great delight in having chugging competitions with his mates.
Rock Star and Monster have packaging designed very obviously to aim at teenagers.
Personally I hate them and think their sales should be restricted. Ds1 would also like to drink alcohol and take drugs as he is an idiot thinks they're cool too, but it's only the law that restricts their availability to him.

NotOneIota · 14/06/2015 18:53

Just as a bit of fun for Team Woo Woo....the logo for Monster drink,the three stripes down the can,that we assume are claw marks,someone has pointed out that one of those claw marks are identical to the Hebrew mark 'vav'...that stands for the number 6. Three marks on the can..666...called Monster......wooo!

retaillady · 16/06/2015 17:06

I am a retailer in a small village and I often sell big, beer can size, caffeine drinks to children.
I am not happy that my job forces me to sell caffeine drinks to kids, under 16's.
In fact I only sell them to workmen that pop in and kids after school, before going home as mum and dad will not be able to see them drink it, is my thought.
Theses kids are not even 13 yet. I try and build a repor with them and suggest another drink that might be on a better offer but they always say no. I don't like selling them to people under 16 at all but my company has no restriction on them so I cant refuse the sale. I have no power to stop them.
I have researched this at length and Trading standers says....."There is no legal prohibition on energy drinks. However all major UK manufacturers advise these products are not suitable for children, which is defined by being under 16."
They also say "you may decide to impose a restricted policy on your own initiative or you maybe asked to do so by your local school or parents group. You should listen to such requests and take action where possible."

But for me unless a customer/parent complains to the highest member of my management team at head office and they then go and discus it with who ever makes decisions. Then they would have to role out a company wide policy to restrict sales of caffeine to kids.