Logan Paul and KSI pose with Prime hydration bottles prior to a daily season game between the Arizona Diamondbacks and Los Angeles Dodgers on March 31, 2023, at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles, CA. (Photo by Brandon Sloter/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Brandon Sloter | Icon Sportswire | Getty Images
WASHINGTON — Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer is asking on the Food and Drug Administration to look right into a sports energy drink founded by social media influencers that has grow to be popular with kids and youths.
Prime, founded by YouTube stars Logan Paul and KSI, quickly gained a fervent following after its 2022 launch and have become an official partner of Futbol Club Barcelona this month. The brand offers a bottled hydration drink and a canned energy beverage, which is claimed isn’t intended for youngsters.
In a release Monday, Schumer’s office called the energy drink a “cauldron of caffeine.”
“Many physicians have serious concern for Prime, and I write to specifically urge your agency to analyze Prime for its claims, marketing and caffeine content,” Schumer, D-N.Y., wrote in a letter to FDA Commissioner Dr. Robert Califf. Prime drinks have gone viral on social media platforms, reminiscent of TikTok, which is itself under intense regulatory scrutiny in Washington.
The Prime energy drink accommodates 200 mg of caffeine per 12 ounces, in comparison with 34 mg in a 12-ounce can of Coca-Cola and 80 mg in an 8.4-ounce can of Red Bull, in line with Schumer’s letter. Several countries, including Australia, South Africa, the UK, Canada and Latest Zealand have already banned Prime Energy drinks or its caffeine-free version, Prime Hydration, in some schools.
Schumer urged Califf to begin an investigation based on physicians’ warnings to folks who say the caffeine content “can have an adversarial impact on the health of youngsters” in addition to targeted promoting to younger demographics. The corporate’s lack of sufficient warnings about its caffeine content also invites scrutiny, he wrote.
“A straightforward search on social media for Prime will generate an eye-popping amount of sponsored content, which is promoting,” Schumer wrote. “This content and the claims made ought to be investigated, together with the ingredients and the caffeine content within the Prime energy drink.”
An organization representative told CNBC that Prime Energy “accommodates a comparable amount of caffeine to other top selling energy drinks, all falling throughout the legal limit of the countries it’s sold in,” and that it welcomes discussions with the FDA on protecting customers.
Prime Energy “complied with all FDA guidelines before hitting the market and states clearly on packaging, in addition to in marketing materials, that it’s an energy drink and isn’t made for anyone under the age of 18,” the representative said.
