Apparently, Pop-Tarts are not just for breakfast anymore. BuzzBallz recently released two limited-edition vodka-based cocktails inspired by Frosted S’mores and Frosted Brown Sugar Cinnamon Pop-Tarts. They contain 15% alcohol by volume and are being promoted as a nostalgic treat for adults who grew up with the toaster pastries.
The collaboration immediately raised a familiar question: Is this marketing to children? An alcohol industry member filed a complaint with the Distilled Spirits Council of the United States (DISCUS), arguing that the Pop-Tarts branding had a special appeal to people under 21. Sazerac, which owns BuzzBallz, countered that Pop-Tarts is a mainstream brand enjoyed across generations and that the collaboration was designed for legal-age adults through nostalgia, familiar flavors and novelty. The company also made an interesting point: brown sugar and cinnamon are common culinary flavors enjoyed by people of all ages.
DISCUS ultimately ruled against the packaging, but not because cinnamon or s’mores are inherently children’s flavors. The Code Review Board said using the Pop-Tarts name was not, by itself, a violation. It objected to the familiar Pop-Tarts logo, color scheme and prominent pictures of the pastries, concluding that the combination increased underage appeal and the possibility of confusion with the food product. In other words, the board distinguished between flavor and marketing presentation. That distinction sounds obvious, yet it frequently disappears when we talk about nicotine.
While the alcohol industry can separate taste from predatory marketing, that nuance entirely disappears when the conversation shifts to nicotine products. I have heard versions of “flavors hook kids” for years. It is even the name of a California Department of Public Health campaign, and Campaign for Tobacco-Free Kids describes cotton candy, bubblegum, mango, and similar flavors as “kid-friendly.” Here in Minnesota, we have the Flavors Hook Kids MN campaign, run by Minnesotans for a Smoke-Free Generation, a coalition of over 60 public health groups. I don’t dispute that flavors can appeal to people regardless of age. What I question is the tendency to treat a sweet or fruity flavor itself as evidence that a nicotine product was designed for youth.
Pop-Tarts illustrates why that assumption is shaky. The brand certainly has a history with young consumers. A Federal Trade Commission report documented Pop-Tarts promotions aimed at teens and tweens years ago. But today’s Pop-Tarts audience is hardly confined to children. Numerator found that 72% of surveyed Pop-Tarts purchasers ate the products themselves, 54% said other adults in their households ate them, and 31% cited childhood memories as a reason for buying them.
Pop-Tarts itself understands the value of adult nostalgia. In 2023, the brand brought back characters from its old “Crazy Good” advertising and promoted them at events including Adult Swim Fest and the Pop-Tarts Bowl. The company said adult consumption of Pop-Tarts during snacking occasions had increased 17% since 2019 and explicitly described the campaign as reminding fans of their childhood love of the product. Apparently, growing up does not require surrendering your taste buds at the door.
FDA’s recent nicotine decisions also suggest that flavor alone does not determine the intended audience. Just this month, the FDA has authorized two brands of nicotine pouches, including on! in Rich Berry, Cappuccino, and Autumn Spice flavors. Swedish Match’s ZYN nicotine pouches also received authorization for flavored products. Both brands were authorized after the FDA reviewed their population-level risks (initiation by people who don’t currently use nicotine) and potential benefits for adults who use more harmful tobacco products.
In May, FDA authorized the first non-tobacco, non-menthol e-cigarettes, mango and blueberry-flavored Glas pods, after determining that device age-verification technology and marketing restrictions were expected to sufficiently mitigate youth access.
The reality is that these flavors are an essential tool for adults trying to quit smoking. Peer-reviewed research consistently shows that when governments implement blanket flavor bans, people who vape don’t always quit nicotine—instead, conventional cigarette smoking rates go up. Yet, while public health groups loudly push to ban these flavored off-ramps, there is a collective shrug when an alcohol brand wraps 15% ABV vodka in Pop-Tarts graphics.
Some lawmakers suggest a middle ground: ban flavors in grocery and convenience stores, but allow them in adult-only specialty tobacco or vape shops. This compromise creates a dangerous asymmetry of convenience. There are thousands of gas stations and corner stores across the United States where an adult can seamlessly purchase milk, bread, gas, and a deadly pack of cigarettes. If we force safer, flavored harm-reduction alternatives out of those neighborhood convenience stores and restrict them to the limited number of vape shops, we tilt the scales. We are making the deadlier product infinitely easier to purchase. Some rural areas don’t have vape shops. Public policy should never make it more convenient to buy a product that kills than one that helps people stop smoking.
Yet, while public health groups loudly push for these structural barriers, there is a collective shrug when alcohol brands wrap 15% ABV vodka in Pop-Tarts-branded BuzzBallz or roll out branded alcopops like Hard Mountain Dew and Sunny D Vodka Seltzer. It is a double standard that costs lives.
Protecting children from nicotine is vital, but it shouldn’t come at the cost of the 1,300 Americans dying from smoking today. Public health advocacy must stop forcing a false dichotomy between youth prevention and adult harm reduction. If we want to save the lives of the thousands of adults dying from smoking-related diseases each year, it must reject policies that shield cigarettes from competition. We must demand public health policies that balance both realities, rather than pretending that an adult’s preference for flavors disappears the moment they try to save their own life.
A flavor is not an age group.
Until next time…
Notes:
I create these newsletters as a personal project. They are not affiliated with any current or past employers or groups with which I volunteer. I receive no financial compensation for my efforts to create these newsletters. I use AI to help with spelling, punctuation, grammar, and editing some of my work.