Hard Solo to be renamed Hard Rated after regulator finds alcoholic drink had ‘evident appeal to minors’

The alcoholic drink Hard Solo will change its name to Hard Rated after Australia’s beverages advertising code regulator found the brand would have a “strong or evident appeal to minors”.

The drink itself will not change – just the name and packaging, with the word Solo removed.

When released earlier this year, the alcoholic version of the popular soft drink Solo faced backlash from politicians and health bodies.

The company behind the beverage denied the drink was aimed at children, and the Alcohol Beverages Advertising Code had given pre-approval for Hard Solo as an appropriate product.

But Abac’s final determination found the drink had a “strong or evident appeal to minors”.

“The recognition and familiarity of the Solo branding on the packaging creates an illusion of a smooth transition from a non-alcoholic to alcoholic beverage for minors,” Abac’s decision said.

“Taken as a whole a reasonable person would probably understand the branding and packaging design would have an evident appeal to minors.”

Carlton and United Breweries, which is owned by Asahi, in a statement said it was “disappointed with the outcome” but it had accepted Abac’s decision.

The Foundation for Alcohol Research and Education said in a statement that Abac’s “backflip” shows the industry-led scheme is “not working”, calling for government-led regulation of alcohol marketing.

Ceo Caterina Giorgia argued Abac only changed its position after Hard Solo “received intense media scrutiny when the product drew the attention of federal Parliamentarians”.

“Today’s announcement just confirms the very obvious point that alcohol companies and lobbyists cannot be trusted to set their own rules about alcohol marketing,” she said.

“It should not take a viral media story for the ABAC to admit that this multinational alcohol company has breached its own scheme, which is completely voluntary and has no penalties.”

Abac received a number of complaints about the drink. One person wrote that her son asked to buy Hard Solo without knowing it was alcoholic, while another said “I had a sample in my fridge and my 7 year old son thought it was normal Solo but in a black can”.

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One person argued the beverage would “exacerbate the current teen drinking problem we have in Australia” and another wondered what will come next: “‘Hard’ Mount Franklin? This should be stopped.”

Another simply observed that the name “sounds a bit like Han Solo, which is a Star Wars character”.

Abac responded to this complaint, saying the packaging doesn’t appeal to minors by having “a similar name to [a] Star Wars character”.

The independent MP Kylea Tink has led a push to limit or ban alcohol marketing from reaching children and argued earlier this year the beverage had issues “from beginning to end”.

“This is a product that looks like a soft drink, tastes like a soft drink, has the same name as a soft drink, went through a self-regulatory process and seemingly was approved to be marketed,” she told Guardian Australia in August.

“To me that there is nothing about this product that makes it an acceptable product to have on the shelf when it comes to alcoholic beverages.”

The rebranding process will need to be complete by 9 February 2024, with Hard Solo tap decals in pubs and clubs also needing to transition by that date.