"MinistryofHealth" news and stories

I've gathered over time that France is extremely wary of letting in big name, globally available products. Apparently they don't like Coca Cola, and now the Ministry of Health is giving Red Bull a hard time.

It's only been recently that Red Bull was allowed to be sold in France at all. The energy drink maker had to remove taurine, because the health ministry claims that long term effects of the chemical are unknown. So now Red Bull is allowed in France, but it's still on pretty shaky ground. This article in Flexnews makes it pretty clear that French health officials are looking for any excuse to ban sales of Red Bull.

Apparently taurine, in and of itself isn't really a problem. However, there's a lot of questions that come up when it's combined with caffeine and/or alcohol. Are French officials right to try and get rid of the energy drink? That's a tough question. What's your take on this?