FCUK SPIRIT WITHDRAWN

Published: 23 July, 2008

Fcuk Spirit, the joint venture between Matthew Clark drinks and French Connection clothing, is to be withdrawn after the Portman Group's Independent Panel upheld a complaint that the brand was more likely to appeal to under-18s than to adults. A spokesman for Matthew Clark - which launched the brand last year with hopes that it could challenge the likes of Smirnoff Ice and Bacardi Breezer - said: We're disappointed in the decision and we disagree with it. We are considering the implications of the ruling, but have agreed to withdraw the brand.' The product will no longer be for sale as of 25 July. The Group also upheld a complaint against Kiss Me, an alcoholic fruit-flavoured product sold in a test tube. The panel decided that the alcoholic nature of the product was not adequately conveyed in the packaging. Three other rulings from the panel upheld complaints about the display of alcohol on sale at Tesco, Safeway and Sainsbury's stores in Basingstoke. * The Portman Group has introduced a new Proof of Age Card which it claims is virtually impossible to forge. Newly accredited by the British Retail Consortium's Proof of Age Standards Scheme (PASS), the card will include a hologram of the PASS logo.

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