Government urged to act on sugary alcoholic beverages

Nearly two weeks after the death of a Laval teen who was believed to have consumed a high-alcohol energy drink, calls are growing for governments to regulate an industry perceived as targeting young and vulnerable consumers.

Éduc’alcool, which promotes the responsible consumption of alcohol, wants the federal and provincial governments to come up with concrete and lasting measures to govern highly sweetened alcoholic beverages.

Athena Gervais, 14, was found dead March 1 behind her Laval high school. It’s believed she had consumed an energy drink with an alcohol content of 11.9 per cent.

An online petition started six days ago by the teenager’s godmother is calling on the province to set a maximum alcohol content of 6.4 per cent for beverages sold in convenience stores. The petition had collected close to 11,000 signatures as of Monday morning.

“I thought it was a better idea than just sitting around and crying and doing nothing,” said Cynthia Painchaud.

“I called (Athena’s) father and asked if there was something I could do.

“We’re just trying to make some sense of all that’s happened.”

Meanwhile, Éduc’alcool director Hubert Sacy said the federal and Quebec governments are passing the buck to each other and wants both to get moving on regulating energy drinks.

The group wants the federal government to ban the sale of sugary alcoholic drinks or, at the very least, limit the size of their containers.

It’s calling for packaging that is less attractive to young people and other vulnerable consumers.

It wants the Quebec government to legislate a minimum price for the products, which it feels are too accessible.

Sacy said he would also welcome a law that requires drinks where alcohol content is not apparent to be sold exclusively by the Société des alcools du Québec, which limits the sale of alcohol to customers over 18.

The group is also calling for the marketing of the drinks to be government regulated.

Presse Canadienne