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State Representative Jim Buchy
Potential
Dangers Associated with Powdered Alcohol
Powdered alcohol is a new substance that could hit the shelves in
liquor stores as soon as this summer. I support the public’s
ability to consume food and drink in a responsible manner and generally
work to open the market up for broader consumer choice. In the
case of powdered alcohol, the facts don’t lie. This substance is
untested and could be dangerous. It is best to see how the market
reacts to it before it comes to Ohio.
When you read the powdered alcohol packages, the dangers are
clear. The packaging states the dried powder content is 55
percent Alcohol By Volume (ABV) and when mixed with 8 ounces of water
it is reduced to 10 percent ABV. Compare this with a typical beer at
about 5 percent ABV. Among the many dangers I see would be
someone potentially mixing several packets of the powdered alcohol, and
ending up with a drink many times stronger than your average
beer.
I also see a potential for people, especially our young people, to
snort or experiment with the product in ways that could be very harmful
to their own health and wellbeing. In addition to the consumption
issues, the product could be smuggled more easily and the substance
could end up where it doesn’t belong. All in all, you could be
looking at a potentially dangerous substance that could be on the
market with little to no knowledge of how the substance will be treated
in the real world.
April of last year, this new form of alcohol was approved for sale by
the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives (ATF).
However, that approval was revoked just 2 weeks later. Earlier
this year the substance was approved for sale by the Alcohol, Tobacco
and Trade Bureau, and I believe that it will make it through
distributions lines by June of this year.
This is why I have joint sponsored House Bill 14, along with
Representative Gerberry, which will ban the sale of powdered alcohol in
Ohio. This bill has passed 93 to 1 in the House, and I think that
it is crucial that it becomes law in the very near future. The
Senate is currently working on this bill through the committee process.
We should let this product be tested somewhere else so that we can make
educated decisions on the ways to ensure the market is safe before this
product is available in Ohio.
Please give me your opinion on this topic and others in the news this
month by completing an online survey at tinyurl.com/buchyapril2015
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