Logan Paul’s Company PRIME Defends Amount of Caffeine in Their Energy Drink After Backlash
A 12 oz. can of PRIME Energy contains 200mg of caffeine
PRIME, the beverage brand co-founded by YouTubers Logan Paul and KSI, is facing criticism for its energy drink’s high levels of caffeine.
A 12 oz. can of PRIME Energy contains 200mg of caffeine, compared to the 34mg found in a 12 oz. Coca Cola and Red Bull's 80mg in a standard 8.4 oz. (The company also sells PRIME Hydration, sold in bottles, which has no caffeine.) PRIME Energy comes in a variety of flavors like tropical punch, blue raspberry and strawberry watermelon.
Senator Chuck Schumer of New York is calling on the Food and Drug Administration to look into the potentially dangerous caffeine numbers, per the Associated Press.
“One of the summer’s hottest status symbols for kids is not an outfit, or a toy — it’s a beverage,” Schumer said in a statement.
“But buyer and parents beware because it’s a serious health concern for the kids it so feverishly targets," he claimed.
In a statement to PEOPLE, PRIME defends the amount of caffeine in their energy drinks and stresses it is "not made for anyone under the age of 18.”
“PRIME Energy, sold in a can, dropped in 2023 and contains a comparable amount of caffeine to other top selling energy drinks, all falling within the legal limit of the countries it’s sold in,” a spokesperson for the brand tells PEOPLE. “It complied with all FDA guidelines before hitting the market and states clearly on packaging, as well as in marketing materials, that it is an energy drink and is not made for anyone under the age of 18.”
The statement continued: “As a brand, our top priority is consumer safety, so we welcome discussions with the FDA or any other organization regarding suggested industry changes they feel are necessary in order to protect consumers.”
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In 2022, Panera was under scrutiny for a beverage that contains even higher caffeine levels than PRIME Energy.
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TikTok user Sarah Baus (@sarahebaus) went viral after sharing an explainer on Panera' Mango Yuzu Citrus Charged Lemonade to her followers — detailing her realization that the beverage contains 260 milligrams of caffeine, per the Panera website.
As she explained to her followers, in comparison, an espresso has 63 milligrams of caffeine.
"The regular size [20 oz. lemonade] has 82 grams of sugar. Whatever," she said. "Let's push that aside. It has 260 milligrams of caffeine. An espresso—I looked it up—has 63 milligrams of caffeine...I don't drink coffee. I don't have caffeine very much. I thought!"
The beverage, as Panera's website explains, contains "as much caffeine as our Dark Roast coffee," with the standard size containing 260 milligrams, and a large 30 fl. oz. version containing 390. But Baus, who does her work-from-home duties from within a Panera store and takes advantage of free refills, admitted that she "drinks four or five of these" during a standard work day.
Previously unaware of the contents of the caffeinated lemonade, the TikToker recalled the moment she found out about it. Baus and her husband — who is a type-1 diabetic — were going through the Panera drive-thru. He checked the ingredients in an effort to adjust his blood sugar, and they soon found out how much caffeine she was drinking each day.
"I feel like the Hulk. And I'm drinking these, and I really like them. I said that I'm gonna water them down. But Panera, who's gonna create a product with 263 milligrams of caffeine? Look what you're doing!"
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