Suit targets Miller's Spark beverage

WASHINGTON, Sept. 9 (UPI) -- A U.S. consumer group contends in a lawsuit that MillerCoors' new Spark beverage poses a potential health risk to consumers.

The Center for Science in the Public Interest filed a lawsuit in Washington alleging that Spark contains ingredients that aren't approved for use in alcoholic drinks. The Wall Street Journal Tuesday described the ingredients as caffeine, ginseng, the tropical berry guarana, and taurine, an amino acid.

"Mix alcohol and stimulants with a young person's sense of invincibility and you have a recipe for disaster," warned George Hacker, director of the center's alcohol-policies program.

MillerCoors said the product's formula was approved by the U.S. Treasury Dept. and was being marketed to responsible adults.

The Journal predicted a tough battle over Spark. The newspaper said MillerCoors paid $215 million to acquire the product in 2006 and has built it into the leading caffeinated alcoholic beverage in the nation.