Fulfilling its PR team’s wildest dreams, Müller finds itself in a spot of bother over the launch of two new gin and tonic flavoured yoghurts. Despite its G&T, pink gin and elderflower pots containing less than 0.5% alcohol (effectively, alcohol-free), there has been hot debate online between those decrying this as reckless normalisation of alcohol and those polishing their “getting Müllered” puns.
One Yorkshire GP, Dr Nigel Wells, told the BBC that, particularly in Dry January: “Given the problems we have with alcohol as a society – very visible in our GP practices and A&E departments – the creation of alcohol-inspired yoghurts seems unnecessary and counterproductive to public health.”
But is it? Adults are not getting turned on to alcohol in the dairy aisle and, unless you are one of those saintly parents who never drinks around their children, then, you might argue, we as much as major food manufacturers are all culpable of normalising alcohol for the next generation.
It seems strange, moreover, to single-out yoghurt as a gateway drug for impressionable teens when, from G&T crisps and chocolate, or Joe & Seph’s gin and tonic popcorn to Jude’s gin and tonic ice-cream, there are so many other gin and alcohol-flavoured products available which, intuitively, would appear more tempting to kids. And yet which, current evidence suggests, remain far less exciting to them than, well, cheap alcohol.
Instead, is the real controversy here the wanton misuse of a great spirit? Not only are firms flavouring gin with anything these days (elephant dung, brussels sprouts, rhubarb), they are also deploying gin’s flavours in myriad foods. “The world has gone mad,” says Jack Wakelin, manager at Sheffield cocktail bar, Public. “The best thing about gin is picking out its different botanicals. If you distilled cream or yoghurt as one of those it would probably add nice depth, sweetness and texture. But I can’t say gin would be best enjoyed in yoghurt.”
Nonetheless, expect more gin-food mashups. Gin sales topped a record £3bn last year. Everyone wants a piece of that gin-craze action.
