We brought you word from the mountain earlier in the week that Ben And Jerry’s was teaming with New Belgium to create an ice cream flavored beer. It was very true and some got very excited, but not everybody is happy about the idea (what a shock).
Bruce Lee Livingston, CEO of industry watchdog Alcohol Justice tells USA Today that the new brew is “a troubling development” and “does no favors for the youth of America.” His reasons are clear and actually make a bit of sense:
“It’s a crass, corporate greedy move to put put a brand name like Ben & Jerry’s on a beer,” says Bruce Lee Livingston, executive director and CEO of Alcohol Justice, an alcohol industry watchdog consumer group. “It’s bad for children — who will start looking at beer as the next step after ice cream.”
Now the problem with Livingston’s assertions is the thinking that Ben & Jerry’s didn’t look into such ideas before pursuing the idea. There’s plenty of corporate greed to call out, even with companies that have lighter track records, but I don’t think that Ben & Jerry’s would just go for an idea without calculating the effects. The ice cream company and New Belgium released a statement soon after being asked their thoughts on the criticism, noting that “the two like-minded businesses have long championed similar causes” and they will add awareness to the list.
What do you think? Is ice cream beer just the latest knee jerk outrage or is there a real problem? What about cotton candy vodka? Blueberry whiskey? Put some Minute Maid fruit punch in a glass next to a wine cooler and the difference is hard to see. Maybe the responsibility is on the parents and education?
(Via USA Today)