Two MPs from the Vetëvendosje Movement, Fitore Pacolli and Milazim Salijaj, have warned that Kosovo could soon ban children from buying energy drinks by law.

Pacolli said that it is disturbing when he sees children consuming energy drinks, while he added that in 2019 he had announced that he would take the initiative in the Assembly to make legal changes regarding the use of energy drinks to persons under 18 years of age.

“It is very disturbing when you see children aged 7-13 consuming energy drinks. And it is even more disturbing when they manage to buy in quantities from 1 to 2 liters. Two years ago I was shocked when in a market some 10-11 year old boys were waiting in line to pay for energy drinks in the amount of 1 liter. They were on long school break. In 2019, I promised to take the initiative in the Assembly to make legal changes regarding the use of energy drinks to persons under 18 years of age. “But due to the short duration of that legislature, I have not been able to do so,” she wrote.

Full response:

“It is very disturbing when you see children aged 7-13 consuming energy drinks. And it is even more disturbing when they manage to buy in quantities from 1 to 2 liters. Two years ago I was shocked when in a market some 10-11 year old boys were waiting in line to pay for energy drinks in the amount of 1 liter. They were on long school break. In 2019, I promised to take the initiative in the Assembly to make legal changes regarding the use of energy drinks to persons under 18 years of age. But due to the short duration of that legislature I have not been able to do so

Now, together with MP Milazim Salijaj LVV, we have asked the Directorate for Research within the Assembly for a research on how the use of energy drinks is regulated in the countries of the region and in Europe. Together with Milazim we will start proposals for legal changes preceded by some necessary research, public discussions and awareness campaign in cooperation with civil society and relevant institutions.

According to research, Kosovo still has no legal basis sanctioning the use of energy drinks for persons under 18 years of age.

In the Republic of Albania, the use of energy drinks is regulated by law. Just like alcoholic beverages, energy drinks are classified and the Law “On the Protection of Minors from Alcohol Use” also includes energy drinks. Law 74/2018 PROHIBITS:

Sale of energy drinks to persons under 18 years of age;

Visual media advertising;

Providing energy drinks to minors by the adult accompanying them in public places;

Sale without verification with identification document;

Their use and advertising in educational institutions.

Northern Macedonia does not yet have a law regulating the use of energy drinks, but on the recommendation of the UN Committee on the Rights of the Child, has initiated the amendment of the law banning energy drinks for persons under 18 years of age and has launched an awareness campaign. population for the consequences of energy drinks.

In Europe energy drinks are not considered as alcoholic beverages and that there is no specific legislation that applies in all EU member states but the use of energy drinks is regulated by national legislation in all countries. Most are regulated by specific legislation that sets out the rules on product labeling, advertising, and content.

With Consumer Food Information Regulation (EU) no. 1169/2011 producers are obliged to add the text “High caffeine content. It is not recommended for children or pregnant or breastfeeding women ”as well as to correctly state the caffeine content. While with the Code of Practice for marketing and labeling of energy drinks, manufacturers are instructed not to advertise products to children. In addition to these there are a number of regulations governing the use of energy drinks.

In the United Kingdom the above mentioned regulation 1160/2011 is applied which defines the rules that must be applied and is applied in labeling.
The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA, 2015) has confirmed that the amount of caffeine up to 3 mg per kg of body weight is safe for children and adolescents (3-18 years) and up to 400 mg for adults.

The European Code for Energy Drinks recommends that soft drinks with a high caffeine content (above 150 mg) should not be consumed nor should they be promoted or sold to persons under 16 years of age.

In Europe, energy drinks are not drinks that are consumed on a daily basis and are sold in small packages.

Dua Lipë’s father had shared a photo of his father and Rita Ora grandfather in 2019.

Rita Ora and Dua Lipa’s grandparents can be seen enjoying a drink in Kosovo in the 1960s in an image from the archive, which has circulated on social media, writes the Daily Mail.

In the image posted by Dua’s father, Dukagjin Lipa, 52, in 2019, Rita’s grandfather, Besim Sahatçiu, a film, TV and theater director, and Dua’s grandfather, Seit Lita, a historian and intellectual, sit together enjoying a drink.

Dukagjin Lipa added an caption to the photo posted, “My father, Seit Lipa and Mr. Besim Sahatçiu. Grandparents of Dua Lipa and Rita Ora having a drink in the city of Peja around the 1960s. Grandparents friends ”.

Besim, who died in 2005, was highly respected in his field and in 2018, the Kosovo Ministry of Culture honored him posthumously with a Lifetime Achievement Award for Cinematography.

That year, a street in the city of Pristina was named after him.

Seit passed away in 1999 and was well known in his field, acting as head of the Kosovo Institute of History from 1990 to 1995.