Party’s over: China pulls Viagra-laced “elixirs” from liquor stores - Quartz

By Hanna Kozlowska | Quartz – Aug 3, 2015

An uplifting ingredient. (AP PHOTO/Amr Nabil)

Local authorities in southern China are investigating distillers for adding the impotence drug Viagra to their products. Officials seized more than 5,300 bottles of baiju, a clear, grain-based spirit that is the country’s most popular hard liquor, along with large quantities of sildenafil, the generic name for the drug.

The suppliers reportedly told customers that the liquor had “health preserving qualities” and was made with “Chinese herbs.” Alcohol producers in China frequently market their products as containing ground-up animal parts that purportedly enhance male virility; unlike endangered wildlife products like rhinoceros horn, Viagra actually treats erectile dysfunction, but also comes with significant health risks.

Police in the city of Liuzhou are scrutinizing two plants for adding the drug, and at least 51 Chinese distillers are suspected of doing the same, according to the Financial Times.

Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer said earlier this year that sales of Viagra were up 47% in China, thanks in part to its heavy marketing efforts.

Source: http://qz.com/470271/partys-over-china-pulls-viagra-laced-elixirs-from-liquor-stores/