Warnings of an Illegal Methamphetamine Substance Called “Strawberry Quick”-Truth! & Outdated!
Summary of eRumor:
Facebook posts and forwarded emails warns that a new form of meth that looks and tastes like Strawberry Quick is being handed out to school children.
The Truth:
Credible warnings about strawberry meth, or meth that looks like Strawberry Quick, circulated in 2007 — but rumors resurfaced in October 2017 and don’t appear to reflect a new threat or trend.
An Associated Press story published in newspapers across the U.S. on May 1, 2007, focused on discoveries of what appeared to be a strawberry-flavored children’s drink at the scene of an illegal meth lab. It has come to be known as “Strawberry Quick.”
It has no connection with the popular Nestle QUIK flavored milk products now renamed Nestle Nesquik. Chris Harrison, a chemist at the Arkansas State Crime Laboratory, says that meth is bitter to the makers try to take that edge off any way they can and have used lollipops, sodas, candy, and anything else they can to make it easier for first-time users. The article said that the “Strawberry Quick” angle came to light in January when the Nevada Department of Public Safety issued a warning about it.
Reports about Strawberry meth have since appeared in several states, including Missouri, Washington State, Wisconsin, and Texas, Nevada, and California.
Because of the sweet taste and candy-like appearance there is concern about children coming into contact with it but experts say its not been made that way just for the purpose of introducing it to children. Giving it a sweet taste and a harmless-sounding name is a marketing technique to ease it into the hands of any potential victim.
According to a release from California Senator Dianne Feinstein she has joined with Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa to sponsor a bill in congress that would make it a federal crime to appeal to children with candy-flavored meth or other drugs. Feinstein said that substances like “Strawberry Quick” are “…designed to get people to try it a few times. It’s all about hooking young people, and we have to stop this practice before it grows any further.”
Flash forward to 2017, and the rumor surfaced again on Facebook. Readers were warned about a “new drug” in schools that parents should know about:
NEW DRUG in Schools…Please pass this on even if you do not have kids in school. Parents should know about this drug. This is a new drug known as ‘strawberry quick ‘.There is a very scary thing going on in the schools right now that we all need to be aware of….
We couldn’t find any indication that warnings that circulated in 2017 reflected a new threat or a new trend in schools. For that reason, we’re calling these reports both “truth” and “outdated.”