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Cocaine Test Prompts Red Bull Removal In Germany

Posted by ScuttleMonkey on from the but-it-just-tastes-so-yummy dept.

viyh writes to mention that six German states have mandated pulling Red Bull Cola energy drinks off the shelves after testing found trace amounts of cocaine in the drink. "Germany's Federal Institute for Risk Assessment said Monday that the cocaine level was too low to pose a health risk. It planned to produce a more detailed report Wednesday. Red Bull said its cola is 'harmless and marketable in both the US and Europe.' It said similar coca leaf extracts are used worldwide as flavoring, and a test it commissioned itself found no cocaine traces."

4 of 290 comments (clear)

  1. Bottoms Up. by Ostracus · · Score: 5, Informative

    Coca Cola with real Coca.

    --
    Shai Schticks:"You don't make peace with friends, you make peace with enemies"
    1. Re:Bottoms Up. by MoonBuggy · · Score: 5, Informative

      Actually Coca-Cola does still contain real coca leaf flavouring. It has the cocaine extracted by Stepan Company before the leaves are passed on to Coca-Cola.

      I wouldn't be particularly surprised if the process is less than 100% effective, either. When you're looking at amounts on the order of 10^-9 grams per litre, it's quite possible that any cola with real coca leaves in (don't know how common they are) has always contained traces and nobody's noticed or cared.

  2. Re:So _that's_ how it works... by John+Hasler · · Score: 5, Informative

    No. That concentration is far too high to qualify as homeopathic. For that you have to get it down to less than one molecule per liter.

    --
    Warning: this article may contain humor, sarcasm, parody, and perhaps even irony. Read at your own risk.
  3. Re:In other news... by xianthax · · Score: 5, Informative

    67% of dollar bills in this study, and thats south shore mass, i would expect manhattan to step that number up a bit.

    http://www.southcoasttoday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080411/NEWS/804110348